Eagles sweep T-Birds, move to 2-0 in GNC play

An energized Northland Pines Fieldhouse hosted the Northland Pines varsity volleyball team as it moved to 2-0 in Great Northern Conference play Tuesday night after the Eagles beat Lakeland Union in straight sets, 3-0. 

The Eagles cruised to 25-17 and 25-20 wins in the first two sets, then faced adversity, trailing by four early and 22-19 late in the third before rallying to win 25-22 to close the match. 

“We came out strong right off the bat. The girls were amazing,” said Northland Pines Head Coach Julie Smith. 

The opening set was a feeler for both sides. Pines grabbed an early 6-3 advantage, but the visiting T-Birds answered back, and Pines trailed 7-9. 

It was a 16-16 tie before the home Eagles rattled off the next five points and ended on a 9-1 run to win the first, 25-17. 

Set two felt similar, as Pines extended an early lead to four, 8-4, and got the lead up to five at one point, 16-11. Senior outside hitter Kami Neff finished off the set with a kill from the left side for a 25-20 win. 

Pines felt the most adversity in the third, as Lakeland jumped out to a 4-0 lead and kept the momentum for much of the set. It looked like the T-Birds would escape the sweep and force a fourth set, but a pair of timeouts allowed Coach Smith to make adjustments to what Lakeland was showing. Down 19-22 and after a timeout, Northland Pines fired a few kills up front from Neff and Tatum Fisher to score four straight and lead 23-22. The Eagles kept Lakeland scoreless and clinched the match with a 6-0 run. “Our defense seemed to struggle towards the third set. Lakeland was doing some different things, so we just had to play smart,” stated Smith. “The whole idea was to get our offense stronger at the net.” 

More in-depth game comments and notes from Coach Smith can be found in the Sept. 16 News-Review. 

Next up for the Eagles is an invitational tournament at Ripon High School this Saturday, Sept. 12, starting at 9 a.m. The Eagles head into the tournament as the defending champions.