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Wisconsin-Superior
Yellowjackets
Jessica Dvergsten
Jed Carlson-Superior Telegram

Volleyball

Volleyballers win two more, take tourney title

Jessica Dvergsten spikes home the point for the Yellowjackets.
Box Score 1 | Box Score 2

On Saturday the Yellowjacket volleyball team won two more matches, extending their winning streak to four and for the second time this season, brought home first place honors at a tournament, this time being crowned St. Kate's Invitational champions.

Yellowjackets 3, Crown 0

The day started with the Yellowjackets taking on a winless Crown College team, and the black and gold kept the Storm that way, dispatching them in straight sets in a match that took only 50 minutes.

With an attack percentage of .232 pacing the offense, the Yellowjackets earned the win by scores of 25-23, 25-16, and 25-17.

Alexis Landherr (Cambridge, Minn./Cambridge-Isanti) led the way with eight kills and an attack percentage of .400. Alissa Autio (Floodwood, Minn./) and Jessica Dvergsten (Greenbush, Minn./Greenbush-Middle River) had seven kills apiece and also had attack percentages over .300. Keely Deadrick (Esko, Minn./Esko) had 24 assists and three service aces, while Mikayla Bock (Owatonna, Minn./Owatonna) added eight assists.

On defense Lauren Peterson (Deer River, Minn./Deer River) had 13 of the 39 digs for the Yellowjackets. Deadrick had six digs while Bock and Jessica Zimmerman (Monticello, Minn./Monticello) each had five digs.

Yellowjackets 3, St. Catherine 2

The only thing standing between the Yellowjackets and the tournament championship was an afternoon match with the hosts from St. Catherine, and it ended up giving the Yellowjackets their biggest test of the weekend, if not the season.

After falling behind by losing the first two sets, the Yellowjackets rallied from behind, taking the final three sets to pick up the win by scores of 24-26, 21-25, 25-13, 25-19, and 15-12.

The opening set went back-and-forth with the Yellowjackets at one point opening up a 14-9 lead. As the set progressed the Yellowjackets looked to be on the verge of the win with a seven-point edge at 23-16, but St. Catherine came roaring back, scoring seven straight points to close to within two. After the Yellowjackets stopped the bleeding and getting to set point, St. Catherine went on a 5-0 run to win the set.

The second set was similar to the first - back-and-forth with neither team able to pull away. Then, also like the first set, St. Catherine went on a late run. With the set tied at 18-18, St. Catherine closed out with a 7-3 run to take a commanding lead in the match.

In the third set the Yellowjackets got their bearings and dispatched St. Catherine quickly. With the score tied at 4-4, Chelsey Walerius (New Prague, Minn./Tri-City United) went on a service run, serving up ten straight points and giving the Yellowjackets a 14-4 lead and they cruised to the third set victory.

With the score tied at 17-17 in the fourth set, the Yellowjackets scored three straight points, two of them on the service of Walerius, and the Yellowjackets pulled even in the match by winning the set.

The fifth and final set the Yellowjackets never trailed and built an insurmountable lead midway through the set with a 4-0 run, three of the points again on the service of Walerius. The Yellowjackets maintained the lead and cruised to victory in the set and the match.

Senior Brooke Vonasek (East Grand Forks, Minn./East Grand Forks) had a monster match for the Yellowjackets, posting 20 kills and a .439 attack percentage, both team highs. Kitty Tynen (Stillwater, Minn./Stillwater) posted 17 kills and Zimmerman had 11 as three Yellowjackets registered double figures.

Deadrick enjoyed another big afternoon, finishing with a season-high 54 assists. For the weekend she finished with 157 assists. Deadrick and Dvergsten accounted for four of the six service aces the Yellowjackets had in the match.

The Yellowjackets were strong defensively in the match as well, with three players registering more than 20 digs. Peterson led the way with 27, while Tynen and Zimmerman each posted 23. As a team the Yellowjackets had 114 digs. Dvergsten was the top Yellowjacket with three blocks.

All-Tournament Team: Keely Deadrick (Esko, Minn./Esko) and Lauren Peterson (Deer River, Minn./Deer River), who both had outstanding weekends, were named to the all-tournament team. It is the second straight week that Deadrick received all-tournament honors, while it is the first time this season that Peterson was honored.

With the victories, the Yellowjackets now stand at 10-2 on the season. It is one of the best starts to a season in school history and you have to go back to the mid-1990s to find the last time the Yellowjackets have gotten off to such a hot start. In 1996 the Yellowjackets started the season 11-3, while the 1995 squad was even better, starting the year 17-2.

The Yellowjackets (10-2, 0-0 WIAC) will make their home debut and enter WIAC play on Wednesday, September 18 when they will host UW-River Falls at Mertz Mortorelli Gym. Game time is scheduled for 7:00 p.m.
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