River Falls and Prescott volleyball came into the playoffs facing completely different scenarios, but the different journeys led to the same destination as they advanced to Sectionals on Saturday, Oct. 26.

River Falls

As a No. 2 seed in Division 1, River Falls had a bye that led to a matchup with No. 7 Stevens Point with Sectionals on the line. The Wildcats jumped out to a 5-0 lead in the first set and did not look back to win 25-11. In set two, the teams battled the entire way up until a 21-21 tie. River Falls managed to take the set 25-23 and rode the momentum to a 25-22 set three win in which they did not trail.

“I thought that we did a really nice job of spreading our offense out a little more than we have in the past,” Head Coach Sara Kealy said. “I’m really confident in my girls in the progression, the growth they’ve shown throughout the season.”

River Falls now lines up with No. 3 Eau Claire Memorial on Thursday, Oct. 31 at Menomonie in search of a Sectional Final appearance.

River Falls swept Memorial 3-0 Sept. 19. Kealy said playing a team they have played already can bring an added challenge and there is no guarantee things will go the same as they did last time around.

“You still have to show up and play the game,” Kealy said. “When you’ve got teams that have talented players on both sides of the net, on any given night it could go either way.”

River Falls has made the State Tournament in seven of eight years, and the team has dealt with pressure on a yearly basis. Kealy said while teams like Hudson are extremely talented and cohesive, sometimes being a new arrival at the top can be a challenge of its own.

“The one thing that my team has that I think is an advantage over a lot of our other opponents in our section is experience,” Kealy said.

Kealy said Eau Claire Memorial faced a similar situation last year in the Sectional Final when many thought they would make it to State, yet the Wildcats pulled off the upset.

For River Falls, the program will always have its sights set on State, but it is about taking things a round at a time to get there.

“Years ago our goal was just to win a Regional game,” Kealy said. “Our goal every year is to be at State, and I think that if we don’t reach that goal, we do feel like we’ve failed in some ways.”

Prescott

Prescott finished in the top half of the Middle Border Conference at 4-3, a conference largely made up of Division 2 opponents, yet still found themselves as a No. 10 seed in Division 3.

The squad has made an absolute statement in the postseason, taking down No. 7 Elk Mound 3-0 (25-10, 25-14, 25-18), No. 2 Marathon (25-14, 28-26, 25-22) and No. 3 Fall Creek 3-0 (26-24, 25-21, 25-19).

“I’m seeing us tackle the mental side of the game,” Head Coach Geoffrey Snyder said. “It’s been really pushing me as a coach to extend my thinking and approach the game in a different way.”

Facing Division 2 opponents has helped Prescott on their run, as they have made major improvements since the early season.

“Middle Border Conference is competitive, you can’t take a night off,” Snyder said. “It creates that consistency.”

Snyder said the conference has top-tier hitters and that has been a huge help when facing some tough teams in the postseason. Entering as a No. 10 seed, there has not been pressure on the Cardinals to succeed, which has allowed them to play free and see what they can do from there.

“It’s just that underdog mentality,” Snyder said. “We’ve played in some pretty tough gyms already last week and we have done such a great job of blocking out the noise.”

The Cardinals now head to Stratford on Thursday to take on No. 1 Stratford who enters with a dominant 30-4 record.

“We just need to continue to make adjustments. We need to continue to trust each other,” Snyder said. “Expect the other teams to have a big response.”

Ellsworth

Ellsworth found its game at the right time of the season, leading to a win over No. 9 Hayward in the playoffs 3-1 in Division 2 (20-25, 25-19, 25-22, 25-17). The No. 8 seed then took on No. 1 seed Osceola and gave the titans everything they could handle in a 3-2 loss to end the season (25-20, 12-25, 19-25, 25-19, 11-15).

The Panthers may not have started the season the way they had hoped; however, they found their identity later in the season and it showed. Ellsworth had one conference win heading into the final two matchups in which they beat Amery and Somerset. Ellsworth was previously swept by Osceola, yet played to the caliber of a top team with the season on the line.

Elmwood/Plum City

EPC took a No. 3 seed into the Division 4 playoffs, opening with a 3-1 win over No. 6 Ladysmith (25-27, 27-25, 25-22, 25-15). In the Regional Final, EPC lost 3-0 to No. 2 Regis (25-11, 25-18, 25-14).

It was a big season for EPC, finishing second in the Dunn-St. Croix Conference after finishing sixth a year ago. The team brought home some strong wins including a road win against rival Spring Valley.

Spring Valley

Spring Valley hosted a Regional Semifinal matchup as a No. 4 seed in Division 4, but fell short against No. 5 seed Clear Lake 3-0. Clear Lake took set one 25-17 before dominating a 25-6 set and won 25-20 in set three.

The Cardinals had a strong regular season that featured a finish in the top half of the Dunn-St. Croix Conference and they beat Clear Lake 2-1 back in September.