On Thursday, Sept. 9, the Prescott and Spring Valley volleyball teams were two of the four teams that participated in the Baldwin-Woodville Quad event at the Baldwin-Woodville High School.

Prescott was the first volleyball team in action on Thursday afternoon. Its first match was against Clear Lake, a strong varsity squad that has made deep playoff runs throughout the last several years of the WIAA volleyball tournament. The Cardinals got out to a quick start, taking a four-point advantage early in the first set.

As the match continued, Clear Lake began to chip away at the Prescott lead, slowly climbing back into the game. The rosters were essentially trading points during the final few points of the first set. Prescott eventually pulled away just enough to secure a first set victory 25-23.

The following two sets were just as competitive between the Cardinals and the Warriors. Clear Lake came out playing with desperation, decisively winning the second set to force a winner- take-all third set against Prescott. In that third and final set, Prescott fell behind early, trailing 6-1 to start the set, a hole that they couldn’t quite dig themselves out of. Clear Lake took care of business, defeating Prescott in three sets.

The Prescott Cardinals have yet to begin Middle Border Conference matches. Since none of the important conference matches have been played, it means that a playoff run is not out of the question if Prescott can have a strong showing against Middle Border teams throughout the remainder of the season. As of Tuesday, Sept. 14, only two Middle Border teams, Saint Croix Central and Osceola, have played in conference matches.

The Prescott Cardinals will get its first conference opponent on Thursday, Sept. 16, on the road against Saint Croix Central. That game is expected to begin at 7 p.m.

Spring Valley Volleyball

Spring Valley was also in action at the Baldwin- Woodville Quad event on Thursday afternoon, under the direction of head coach Kelli Schlegel. The first match for Spring Valley was against Baldwin-Woodville. Spring Valley struggled out of the gate and Schlegel’s squad found itself in a hole early against Baldwin-Woodville.

The Cardinals began to fight their way back into the game, but it was just too much to overcome. Baldwin-Woodville defeated the Cardinals in the first set. The second set was more of the same for Spring Valley. Baldwin-Woodville again got off to a solid start, scoring several consecutive points early to jump out to an early lead. Baldwin-Woodville completed the sweep of Spring Valley by winning in two sets.

Although conference play has yet to fully ramp up for Spring Valley, the Cardinals are 10 in Dunn-St. Croix Conference play which has them tied for first place with Elmwood/Plum City. The next match for Spring Valley is on Thursday, Sept. 16, at Elmwood High School at 7 p.m.

Ellsworth Volleyball

On Thursday, Sept. 9, the Ellsworth Panthers volleyball team competed in the Elk Mound Quad against host team Elk Mound, as well as Somerset and Glenwood City. In the series of three games, Ellsworth dropped all three, lowering the Panthers’ record to 2-10 for the season.

The first match was against Elk Mound. Ellsworth struggled early in the game, trailing by as many as 10 points early in the match. The Panthers began to chip away but again Elk Mound went out a run. By the time the run was over, Elk Mound had finished the first set with a 25-13 victory.

The second set was much more efficient for Ellsworth. The Panthers went on a small scoring run of their own and began competing at a high level with Elk Mound. However, that Ellsworth scoring run eventually stalled and Elk Mound finished the game strong, winning 25-19 and sweeping Ellsworth.

The second match of the day for Ellsworth volleyball was against the Somerset Spartans, a team that went into the game with a 5-1 record that included victories against Elk Mound, Colfax and Bloomer.

The volleyball dominance for Somerset continued against Ellsworth at the Elk Mound quad. Somerset won the first set 25-14 convincingly. The second set was more dominant volleyball from a Somerset team that’s only loss came against the St. Croix Falls Saints, a team that has made deep volleyball playoff runs for the last five years.

Somerset again got out to an early lead against Ellsworth in the second set at the Elk Mound Quad. The Spartans never looked back and defeated Ellsworth 25-17 to sweep the match against the Panthers.

Although the Panthers volleyball team has had a rough start to the season, that can quickly be turned around once Middle Border Conference play begins in the coming weeks. If Ellsworth can have strong showings against conference opponents such as Prescott, Osceola and Saint Croix Central, then playoffs are still a possibility.

The Panthers will get their first important conference opportunity on Thursday, Sept. 16, against the Osceola Chieftains. That match will be played at the Ellsworth High School and is slated to begin at 7 p.m.

Photo by Reagan Hoverman

Photo by Reagan Hoverman

Photo by Reagan Hoverman

Photo by Reagan Hoverman

Photo by Reagan Hoverman

Prescott head coach Geoffrey Snyder giving his team direction during the first match of the Baldwin-Woodville Quad on Thursday afternoon.

Prescott setting a ball for sophomore Lila Posthuma (left) to jump up and spike. Posthuma’s efforts contributed to the first-set victory against Clear Lake at the Baldwin-Woodville Quad.

Spring Valley volleyball head coach Kelli Schlegel talking to her team during a timeout at the Baldwin-Woodville Quad on Thursday afternoon.

Spring Valley volleyball player Mylie Bale tossing the ball in the air as she begins her serve against Baldwin-Woodville at the Baldwin-Woodville Quad on Thursday, Sept. 9.