After a somewhat lackluster home opener against the Mavericks, the Lady Cyclones enacted a measure of revenge on the road in their first South Central Conference matchup against the Maple River Eagles on September 4.
It may only be the second season in this new conference, but claiming the top spot is one of this team’s many goals, and they used a blend of vicious strikes and stellar defense to take the match three sets to one in hostile territory.
As they prepared for the matchup, Coach Tyler Sander spoke on the “first game jitters” the Cyclones suffered through in their season opener against MCW. “That first match can be a bit sloppy while we try to find ourselves on the court…we had a few days to really work on what went well and where we had to improve, so we’re ready to get back to it tonight.”
Set 1: St. Clair came out ready to avenge their opening loss with a series of furious strikes by Payton Blount; however, Maple River established a sturdy counter early in the set to nab a quick 5-0 advantage.
It took a gentler approach to get those points back as Paige St. Peter landed an ace while the wall of Brooklyn Meng & Ashlyn DeMartini denied the Eagle’s attack to tie the set at six points. One of the surprises of the entire match came from Haddie Jobe, who received her first start of the season and rose to the occasion with a few haymakers at the net. Jobe would end the night with six kills and her jaunty attitude inspired her
teammates toward victory.
Neither team would give in; despite the Cyclones obtaining an 18-14 lead, the Eagles clawed their way back with three straight points. Determined to seize this opening set, Brooklin Hinze and Blount combined on four crucial points to help clinch the set for St. Clair. Blount’s relentless attack helped St. Clair take the opening set 25-23, a preview of how the night would go.
Set 2: Maple River set the tone early with an aerial assault of their own, but St. Clair didn’t buckle as St. Peter & DeMartini clogged up striking lanes, and Jobe returned a shot back to sender on two straight possessions. As the set reached a halfway point, the Cyclones held a narrow advantage, but the Eagles pecked their way back into the set, tying it at 15-15. Unforced errors and a lack of consistency unraveled all the progress for St. Clair as they started to give Maple River a chance to get back in the match. Meng attempted to use her deceptively quick strikes at the net to keep her team in the set, but an under the net penalty by Blount would seal the deal for a 25-23 win for the Eagles.
Set 3: Thankfully, the Lady Cyclones used the frustration from the previous set as the fuel to ignite a firestorm at the net. DeMartini led the charge as she pulverized shots throughout the set in an 11-kill campaign, helping the team take a 25-9 rout in the third set.
Set 4: In what would be the final set of the match, both teams returned to form. After getting their wings clipped in the third set, the Eagles showed some perseverance as they took an early 9-6 lead, but the tag team of DeMartini and Hinze rallied for five straight points to swing momentum back into the Cyclone’s favor for a 11-9 lead. That rally appeared to be what St. Clair needed to finish the match as Hinze landed a left-handed kill and an ace, Meng had a perfectly placed shot in the corner, Blount fired a rocket down the line, and St. Peter continued to limit shots at the net. However, a four-point run by Maple River to narrow St. Clair’s lead to 20-19 triggered the first and only timeout called by Coach Sander. The pep talk seemed to work as the Cyclones went on a 6-2 run to close the set and decide the match 25-22.
It was a hardfought and well-earned bounceback game for these Lady Cyclones, and it marked the first win in the SCC for this 2025 campaign. There were times inconsistent play nearly spelled disaster for St. Clair, and that was one facet of the game Coach Sander looks to improve upon as the season continues. “It took some time to find our groove tonight, and we talked to our players about ‘not beating ourselves’ out on the court and that inspired them to play some of their best volleyball so far.”
The Lady Cyclones will look to keep finding their groove on the court as they face off against two SCC opponents in Le Sueur on September 9 & Sibley East on September 11.
