DEVILS LAKE — The Firebirds were on the cusp of getting Tuesday’s match over with in four sets.
Then they blew four match points.
It all came down to a 15-point fifth set.
“It’s a brand new game,” Devils Lake head coach Tangella Martinson said. “It’s a fresh start.”
Despite a late scare from the pesky Rugby Panthers (4-3), Devils Lake (3-0) remained undefeated in 2026 as the Firebirds pulled out a five-setter at the Devils Lake Sports Center on Tuesday.
They faced a 1-0 deficit and eventually won 3-2 with a 15-9 fifth-set victory.
“I think we had a late start. We had low energy,” Martinson said. “But discipline-wise, we pulled together for the end.”
Senior Kinley Johnson, who came in averaging a team-high 4.67 kills per set, led the Firebirds with 21 on Tuesday night.
She was consistent throughout the match with at least four kills in each of the first four sets, and then three in the 15-point fifth set.
“I think we worked together good, and we communicated really well,” Johnson said of the win. “We started swinging at balls instead of just giving them free balls, so I thought that was good.”
But Devils Lake came out flat and had to work from behind.
Rugby took the first set 25-19. The Panthers were led all night by potent hitter Samantha Blessum. Johnson, Emma Hofstad and Sara Kraft combined for 10 kills in the opening set, but Devils Lake never had another lead after going up 8-6. The Panthers took the final three points to seal it.
“Rugby was scrappy,” Martinson said. “They were putting up a good block. They’re fun to play. They’re probably the most competitive team that we’ve played so far.”
Devils Lake seemed to get into a groove over the next two sets, winning 25-16 and 25-20 to take a 2-1 match lead. The Firebirds had an 8-1 run in the third set.
Johnson’s 21 total kills were complemented by Hofstad’s 16. The duo has been at the forefront of Devils Lake’s offense during the team’s early success. Kraft, the team’s primary middle blocker, added nine kills.
Riley Remmick led with 28 assists, while Brynlee Wolf had 23. Libero Elin Skaar had a team-high 42 digs.
Devils Lake also had 10 aces, including four by Johnson.
Up 2-1 in the match and 19-10 in the fourth set, it appeared all but over.
“Sometimes you beat yourself on the last play or the previous whatever, and then you get in kind of a bad mindset,” Martinson said.
That’s what happened, and it spiraled quickly.
Johnson stopped a 4-0 Rugby run with a hard crosscourt kill. But Rugby won the next five, with kills into both the front row and back row. The Panthers had the Firebirds on their heels.
A Devils Lake error completed an 11-2 run for Rugby. It was tied, 21-21.
Hofstad recorded a kill into Rugby’s block to make it 24-22, giving Devils Lake two set points. Rugby won them both, on an error and a block.
Devils Lake fended off two Rugby set points before the Panthers eventually won the set, 30-28. A potential 29-27 Devils Lake win was thwarted after Rugby defended a long return from Hofstad and a hard hit from Johnson.
A match that had all the momentum going Devils Lake’s way was now anyone’s for the taking.
“A little bit,” Johnson said when asked if she gets nervous in matches like this. “But you’ve just got to push through and do what’s best for the team and work together.”
Naturally, Johnson had back-to-back kills to put Devils Lake up 4-2 in the fifth set.
The Firebirds held on to that lead for the rest of the win. They opened up a comfortable 11-4 advantage, getting an ace from Wolf in the process. Kaylee Whalen and Ashlin L’Heureux recorded kills to win the final two points.
“I feel like they did a good job at just coming out strong in those first 10 points of the fifth set,” Martinson said. “And it’s a short game, so they were ready to rock.”
After winning their first two matches in sweeps, Martinson was happy to see this team face a little more of a challenge and still get it done.
“Coming off a long weekend, it was something we needed,” Martinson said. “We have got a big week this week.”
It’s now time for Region 2 play. Devils Lake jumps right into the fire, traveling to Thompson Thursday to play a Tommies team that made the Division A state tournament in 2025.
“I feel really confident,” Johnson said. “I think our team has really gotten brought together the first few games. I think we’ll just get better as the season goes on.”