Vikings split first two conference games

North Branch 3, St. Louis Park 0 North Branch blasted their way to a 1-0 North Suburban Conference record by downing the St. Louis Park Orioles in straight sets early last week. The road trip to SLP started out rocky when the bus broke down on 694 West, leaving the ladies stranded for a few minutes before they could get another bus to them. “I was proud of how the ladies were able to mentally focus on the task at hand and jump out to a first set victory,” Head Coach Hayley Lang said. Now only was it a first set victory, it was a first set walloping. The Vikes took it 25-8. The second and third set didn’t go much better for the Orioles, as North Branch won 25-14 and 25-15. The sweep was despite setter Emily Trunk going down for the second set with an ankle injury. The senior was able to return in the third set to finish the game though.

“Our team really adjusted well in the second set to push and create momentum for the third and final set of the evening,” Lang said in reference to Trunk’s absence during the second set. Benilde-St. Margaret’s 3, North Branch 2 The Vikes failed to capture their second conference win in three days when they dropped a tight match to Benilde-St. Margaret’s. Again, North Branch came out on fire and absolutely demolished the Red Knights in the first set 25-8. The second set became a battle of momentum, however, when there was large point swings throughout. The Red Knights ended up pulling the set out 27-25, and that may have cost North Branch the match. “We needed to be more careful with the ball at the serving line, and capitalize on the mistakes of Benilde,” Lang said. Benilde won the third set 25-18 and was one game away from earning the victory. North Branch staved off defeat for one more set, beating Benilde 25-18 in the fourth set. But, the Red Knights finished the match off with a 15-11 win in the fifth set. The Vikes lost despite some strong play up front from Tayler Fertig and Courtney Selbitschka.

“They were both consistent in the front row and were able to put the ball down when we needed an attack,” Lang said. “All of that considered, it’s just a tough loss for us at home.” The Vikings turn around and host Duluth Denfeld on Thursday, Sept. 13 at 7 p.m., and then have a bevy of teams coming in to town for a Saturday tournament on Sept. 15. Teams include St. Francis, Princeton, Warroad, Esko, Sartell-St. Stephen and Moose Lake-Willow River.