As the volleyball season reaches the final stages before the playoffs begin, the St. Clair Cyclones cemented a second place finish in the Valley Conference with wins over two Conference foes in Nicollet and Martin Valley Lutheran (MVL). The Cyclones won each matchup convincingly as their aerial assault led by Payton Blount and Ashlyn DeMartini proved to be too much to contain over three straight sets.
The October 7 matchup vs. the Nicollet Raiders featured some strong competition between two teams that seemed evenly matched in the first two sets; the Raiders had a persistent quality throughout the opening sets as their tenacity on the court kept them in arm’s reach of the lead against the Cyclones. Eventually, St. Clair would sharpen their focus and clinch the set against Nicollet. The matchup was played at home, but there was an extra emotional stake for the Cyclones as Senior Night acknowledged four players who have shown incredible determination and leadership for the volleyball program.
Parents walked alongside their daughters as the opening ceremony acknowledged players from grades 7-12 for their contributions to the sport; the seniors were given an especially boisterous wave of cheers as Adeline Lotton, Addison Nicolai, Natalie Kasprowicz, and Rachel Hogen were honored. Coach Ashley Sander spoke briefly about the seniors who have been on the volleyball team since their freshman year and thanked them for “all the hard work you have done for us and the example you set for this program…it’s going to be really hard without you.” Additionally, teammates of the seniors shared touching sentiments and even fought through tears to thank them for being an inspiration to them which led to a warm embrace between close friends. Really tugged on the heartstrings kind of stuff.
Shortly after the tears were wiped away, the Cyclones turned their game faces on as they stepped onto the court to battle the Raiders. As the first set of the matchup started, the Cyclones shuffled their lineup to have all four seniors on the court at the same time; Kasprowicz would serve and despite a 5-6 disadvantage on the court, the point volleyed back and forth between the two teams. Hogen dived to make a great save that helped create a set for Lotton to drive home for the first point of the set. Lotton continued her strong play at the net as she drove home two more kills to push a 4-1 lead for the Cyclones early in the set; however, the Raiders battled their way back to tie the set at 5-5, but the fourth senior, Nicolai, denied a shot at the net to reclaim a slim 6-5 lead in the set. Nicolai showcased her defensive ability in an unconventional way when a shot bounced off her shoulder and stayed in bounds en route to a Blount strike for a point.
The Cyclones seemed to start pulling away from the Raiders as their lead stretched to 13-8, but Nicollet pestered their way toward tying at 16 and then took the lead for the first time in the set. It was anyone’s set at this point as both teams traded points for several possessions as the score crept up to 23-23; some clutch defense by the Cyclones impenetrable wall of Nicolai and Paige St. Peter marked set point at 24-23 and Brooklin Hinze clinched the set with a final strike to give St. Clair the first set. 25-23.
The Raiders were set to take control early of the second set as they blocked several shots from the Cyclones and their own striker unleashed devastating attacks of her own as they led 4-2. When St. Clair needed a lifeline to get back into the set, the seniors of the team rose to the challenge as Nicolai paired with DeMartini to block a shot to tie the set at 4, and Hogen made two body-bruising dives to the floor to save a volley for her team. Their efforts didn’t go to waste as the Cyclones took back the lead 11-9, but Nicollet would counter as the two teams battled throughout the back half of the set. While the evening was meant to pay homage to the seniors, the juniors on the team helped lead the final push for the Cyclones as St. Peter showed her skill at the net by swatting away shots by the Raiders and crashing the net for several kills in the set; DeMartini and Brooklyn Meng would combine to block the clinching point of the set as the Cyclones won 25-20.
As the two teams entered the third set, the Cyclones looked ready to close out the night on a high note as Hinze delivered a thudding shot to score the first point; St. Clair would get off to a hot 5-0 run to start the set, but the Raiders dug their heels in and clawed their way back into the set. That feeling of hope quickly dissipated as the Cyclones began to take control as Lotton and Blount began their offensive onslaught. Blount would score three consecutive kills that would rattle the Raiders for the rest of the set, while Lotton delivered two of the set’s final three points. At one point, the Cyclones led the set by as many as 10 points. Kasprowicz returned to serve on Match Point for St. Clair, but Nicollet spoiled what would have been an eruption of emotion from fans and players alike. Nonetheless, the team closed out the game on a StP block to clinch the set 25-14 to secure their 14th victory on the year. The Cyclones finished the night with 32 kills and seven blocks; Lotton and St. Peter tied with 8 kills, Meng had 19 set assists, and Nicolai and St. Peter tied with four blocks.
The Cyclones looked forward to continuing their success against MVL on October 8. As the Cyclones entered their final Conference matchup of the season against the Chargers, Sander noted the team’s success hadn’t affected their mentality about the game. “We worked on bringing back the enjoyment of this sport…these girls have worked incredibly hard to reach this second-place finish, but we still want to have fun out there and not take ourselves too seriously.”
The match offered little consequence for the Cyclones as their second place in the standings was locked in before the first serve, but St. Clair still made it a mission to come home with a win as they defeated the Chargers in straight sets. The team’s serving proved to be a deciding factor in the matchup as they netted eight aces, with Meng, Aubree Mathiowetz, Haddie Jobe, and Hinze all landing at least one in the first set. Meng has been the team’s sharpshooter at the serving line, but her all-around play at the net secured a number of points in the opening set; a diving save late into the first set kept the point alive as the Cyclones commanded a 19-10 lead. Blount would deliver the final haymaker of the set with a thunderous strike to the court as the Cyclones clinched 25-13.
MVL recovered in the second set and pushed St. Clair to a highly competitive second set as both teams traded points throughout the set; MVL were in a deficit for much of the set as Blount unleashed a flurry of kills and the defensive effort of Nicolai and St. Peter denied shots at the net. With a slim 7-6 lead early in the set, the Cyclones seemed to take control of the set after Mathiowetz and Meng dove to keep a point alive, leading to Blount’s third and fourth kill of the set. St. Clair began to increase their lead as DeMartini displayed a calculated approach at the net as she used both a soft touch to catch the Chargers off-guard and dropped the hammer as she landed a few kills of her own. Despite MVL managing to prolong a set point from 24-17 to 24-21, Lotton shut the door on any comeback as she crashed the net to clinch the second set 25-21. Lotton played similarly to DeMartini in the set as she did a little bit of everything on the court en route to the win.
As the third set started, Blount delivered three scorching strikes as the Cyclones jumped to a resounding 9-1 lead. The Chargers stampeded their way back into the set as they unleashed a barrage of their own to eventually tie the game at 17 points, but St. Peter changed the dynamic of the set when she scored four consecutive points (three kills and an ace) to seal the match. One of the final points of the match shared a similarity to Pinball as a Charger return from a Cyclone serve bounced off the rafters above…MVL was able to return the volley, but it was quickly launched back at them by a DeMartini kill and the match concluded 25-19.
The Cyclones combined for 34 kills and 8 aces on the night. Blount’s play was a deciding factor in the three-set sweep as she netted 15 kills; Lotton, DeMartini, and St. Peter had five kills a piece. With a 15-5 record and a second-place finish in the Conference, Sander had plenty of praise for her team for their success this season, but knows there is still work to do for the playoffs. “These girls have put so much time in the off-season and during the season, and it’s paid off this year. We’re incredibly proud of this second place finish, but this team isn’t satisfied with second place…they know what they’re capable of and they’re ready to show that in the playoffs.”
St. Clair enters the final game of its regular season on Tuesday, October 15, against St. James, and their playoff opponent still hangs in the balance for a potential Thursday, October 17 matchup. Go Cyclones!
