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North Branch's volleyball team is one win away from a trip to the state tournament after taking care of business in its first two Section 7AAA playoff matches last week, knocking off Rock Ridge and Grand Rapids to earn a spot in the section championship match against top-seeded Princeton.

The second-seeded Vikings opened postseason play on Wednesday, October 28, with a convincing sweep of seventh-seeded Rock Ridge, winning 25-11, 25-13, 25-12 in front of their home crowd.

North Branch wasted little time establishing control against the Wolverines, cruising through the opening set before continuing its dominance in the second and third. The Vikings never allowed Rock Ridge to find much momentum.

The victory set up a semifinal showdown with third-seeded Grand Rapids on Friday, October 30, with the Vikings again enjoying home-court advantage.

This time, North Branch faced a tougher challenge, but the Vikings were able to put away the Thunderhawks in four sets, winning 25-19, 25-15, 16-25, 25-22 to punch their ticket to the section finals.

The fourth set proved to be the closest of the night, but North Branch was able to finish things off with a 25-22 victory, avoiding a decisive fifth set and keeping its postseason run alive.

The two victories earned the Vikings a date with top-seeded Princeton in the Section 7AAA championship match on Wednesday, November 6, at Princeton. The match was played after the County Press went to print.

The Tigers present a familiar challenge for North Branch, having swept the Vikings 3-0 in a Mississippi 8 Conference matchup in late September.

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