The Crookston Pirate Volleyball team scored the most points in a set all season, but it wasn’t enough as the Climax-Fisher Knights won the match 3-0 (25-10, 25-11, 26-24) on Senior Night at the Crookston High School gymnasium.
FIRST SET
Crookston scored the first point of the match as Madi Abrams started things with a kill. Climax-Fisher responded by scoring the next five points with a pair of kills from Teegan Johnson, an ace from Kinley Korynta, a kill by Brooklyn Hoffman, and a Crookston attack error.
Crookston battled back, and after an Abigail Bruley kill followed by a block for a kill, the Pirates trailed 7-5. “You can tell Abigail is adjusting to playing at the varsity level,” said Pirate Coach Katie Morgan. “She has a lot of confidence and sometimes I have to remember she was playing junior high last year.” Climax-Fisher took over the rest of the way as Crookston struggled on the serve receive and passing from the back row. The Knights finished the set on an 18-5 run. Brooklyn Hoffman led them with four kills, two kills and an ace from Kinley Korynta, a Teegan Johnson kill, and several passing and attack errors by Crookston as Climax-Fisher won the set 25-10 for a 1-0 lead. “We started to play together. We were communicating and passing well,” said Knight Coach Brenda Slyt. “It was a great finish by everyone that played for us.”
SECOND SET
Climax-Fisher had a strong start to the second set with a 5-1 run with three different players having a kill. Danika Motl also served up an ace to get the Knights rolling. Crookston battled back with kills from Joey Nesseth, a Knight passing error, and another kill by Bruley to get within a 6-4 deficit. Climax-Fisher’s Hoffman got the Knights rolling again as she served up back-to-back aces and built a 16-8 lead. The Knights ended the set on a 9-3 run led by Hoffman’s five kills for a 25-11 victory for a 2-0 lead in the match. “We are aggressive on our serves and we are a good serving team,” said Knight Coach Slyt. “I tell them where to serve it, and they hit it almost every time. It got us going, and we finished the game playing well.“
THIRD SET
The third set was the most competitive of the night as Climax-Fisher served into the net, and Crookston’s Madi Abrams served up an ace for a 2-0 lead. The Knights responded with five straight points, led by Hoffman’s two kills, forcing Crookston to call an early timeout. Crookston scored the next three points thanks to Pirate senior Mackenzie Funk, who had a kill and back-to-back service aces to tie the set at 5-5. “It was great to see Kenzie have a good night on senior night,” said Pirate Coach Morgan. “She played a very good match and really got us going.” Climax-Fisher responded with five straight points with a kill from Teegan Johnson and Lucy Paulsrud and a service ace from Kiah Parkin. Crookston had two errors, and the Knights led 10-5. “We have so many weapons,” said Knight Coach Slyt. “Lucy is our do-everything player for us, and she is so good.” Crookston answered with a 6-1 run behind fantastic serving by Makenna Kopecky, including two aces. Bruley added a block along with three Knight errors, and the set was tied at 11-11. The teams were also tied at 13, 14, 15, 16, and 17. With the set tied at 17, Crookston rattled off the next two points with an Abrams ace and a Knight passing error for Crookston’s first late set lead all season at 19-17. Climax-Fisher rattled off the next four points for a 21-19 lead. The Crookston players haven’t been in this position all season, and they handled it well. They bounced back to score the next two points with a kill and Knight error for a 21-21 tie. The teams battled back and forth, and the set was tied at 24-24, with Crookston needing two points to win their first set of the season. “I was so proud of how hard the girls played and how well they played in the third set,” said Pirate Coach Morgan. “That is the most points we have scored in a set this year, and the girls were excited, and that was great to see. We had a great crowd that made a lot of noise, and the girls were excited.” Climax-Fisher finished the set strong with a Paulsrud kill and a Parkin service ace for a 26-24 victory to win the match 3-0. “Give credit to Crookston. They played a great set,” said Knight Coach Slyt. “We let up a little bit, but I am proud of our girls for finishing strong and finding a way to finish it off and get the win. It is good to have a set like this.”
Crookston drops to 0-17 on the year and will wrap up the regular season on Tuesday at Roseau. Climax-Fisher improves to 11-13 on the year and will play Ada-Bourp-West to wrap up the regular season.
J.V. – Climax-Fisher won 2-0 C Squad – Climax-Fisher won 2-0
1 | 2 | 3 | |
Climax-Fisher | 25 | 25 | 26 |
Crookston | 10 | 11 | 24 |
For Crookston
Kills – Madi Abrams – 3, Abigail Bruley – 3
Blocks – Abigail Bruley – 2
Digs – Rilynn Aubol – 5, Joey Nesseth – 5
Assists- Makenna Kopecky – 5, Rilynn Aubol – 4
Aces – Makenna Kopecky – 2, Mackenzie Funk – 2, Madi Abrams – 2
For Climax-Fisher
Kills – Brooklyn Hoffman – 13, Lucy Paulsrud – 9, Kinley Korynta – 8, Teegan Johnson – 7
Blocks – Lucy Paulsrud – 1, Danika Motl – 1
Digs – Lucy Paulsrud – 18, Brooklyn Hoffman – 10
Assists- Kinley Korynta – 14, Anna Nesvig – 14
Aces –Brooklyn Hoffman – 3, Kiah Parkin – 2, Kinley Korynta – 2, Anna Nesvig – 2