The Dell Rapids St Mary Cardinals won a thrilling five-set match against the Estelline Redmen on Thursday, October 5th, at Dell Rapids St Mary High School. The Cardinals won by set scores of 24-26, 25-21, 13-25, 25-18, 16-14.
After the being tied 2-2 in the first set, Estelline went on a 9-0 run to take an 11-2 lead. The Cardinals were able to tie the match again at 23-23 and 24-24, but Estelline was able to come away with the win.
The Cardinals bounced back in the second set and took at 14-9 lead. Estelline fought back to pull within a point at 16-15, but St Mary pulled away to tie the match at 1-1. The third set started close with Estelline taking a slight 8-6 lead. The Redmen then went on to close out the set on a 17-7 run to take a 2-1 lead.
The fourth set was close throughout most of the set. Each team held small leads with St Mary holding a one-point advantage at 15-14. The Cardinals then closed out the fourth set on a 10-4 run to even the match at 2-2 to force the fifth set.
The final set was back and forth. The two teams were tied at 4-4, 7-7, and 9-9. Estelline then rallied for four straight points to take a 13-9 lead. The Cardinals answered with a 5-0 run to take a 14-13 lead. Estelline tied the set at 14-14, but St Mary finished the win on kills by Cassy Geraets and Cassie Mullaney.
Mullaney finished with 10 kills and two ace serves. Ella Heinitz had eight kills, one dig, and two ace serves. Geraets had one kill, one block, five digs, four ace serves, and 33 set assists. Rhiannon Glazier had seven kills, and Maddie Schwebach had five kills and two blocks. Adyn Heinricy had 16 digs and two ace serves.
The Cardinals (8-13) will travel to Hendricks, MN on Tuesday, October 10th.