Photos by Cameron Carlson
DEVILS LAKE — Three of Devils Lake’s last four matches have gone to five sets.
The Firebirds are still without a region win in the three-class volleyball era. But it’s sure not for lack of trying.
“We’re fighting,” Devils Lake head coach Bridget Hanlan said. “Consistency; we’ve got to get more consistent.”
The Firebirds (9-7, 0-6) dropped a five-set marathon to Grafton (7-7, 3-2) on Thursday at the Devils Lake Sports Center. The set scores were 25-14, 28-30, 25-22, 18-25, and then 6-15 in the tiebreaker. The match counted for two points in the standings, with this being the teams’ only regular-season meeting.
It was Devils Lake’s fifth straight loss, all coming in Region 2 play.
“We did change a few things on our defense and our offense today, so I was really proud of how they came out and adjusted well with only practicing it one day,” Hanlan said. “So we’ll keep practicing our changes, and we’ll get more consistent.”
The Firebirds trailed early in the first and third set — the two sets they ended up winning.
In the first, they won seven points in a row after trailing 6-2. Grafton stormed back with three to tie it, but Devils Lake won the next five — making it 14-9 — and never looked back.
The Firebirds played a well-rounded game. They didn’t rely too much on one individual; they got all their hitters in there, served well and made digs in the back row when they needed to.
Emma Hofstad had a typically strong match with 10 kills on the night. Kinley Johnson led the team, though, with 11 kills. Sara Kraft also provided a pesky presence in the middle.
“We are using everybody, and we’re there,” Hanlan said. “We’ve just got to get our block together to get stronger.”
Devils Lake won the final eight points of the first set to secure a fairly stress-free 25-14 win.
The second set, a 30-28 barnburner that Grafton won, epitomized the match.
Devils Lake faced another early deficit before winning four straight points, climbing ahead 11-9. The Firebirds led by as many as four, but Grafton evened it up to 18-18.
The Spoilers were on the precipice of regaining control of the set. Remarkably, Devils Lake fought off five set points to stay alive. Grafton led 24-22, 25-24, 26-25 and 27-26 — and each time, the Firebirds managed to tie it.
“They did not give up,” Hanlan said. “We talked about that: how hard that is, to do that five times in a row. … They’re fighters.”
Hofstad, after tying it up at 27-27, poked one down the left sideline for back-to-back kills. It gave Devils Lake the first set point of its own. But Grafton responded with a kill, then got the Firebirds off balance to go back ahead.
On the Spoilers’ sixth set point, they reached the 30-point plateau with a block. It evened up the match at a set apiece.
Then in the third, Devils Lake trailed 7-1 before winning five straight to get back in it. Two straight service winners from Johnson put the Firebirds up, 11-10.
After Grafton tied it at 11-11, Julia McIvor pushed a deep two-handed kill, and Hofstad won back-to-back points. The Firebirds led the rest of the way.
The Spoilers took a timeout with Devils Lake leading 23-18, then won four straight. But Riley Remmick — who finished the first-set win with three consecutive aces — capped the third set with another ace.
Remmick led the Firebirds with seven aces on the night.
“Anytime you can get an ace, it helps,” Hanlan said. “That’s a great point to get; a nice, easy point to get.”
Remmick also had the most assists of any Firebird, with 14. Brynlee Wolf was right behind her with 10.
Up two sets to one, Devils Lake fell 25-18 in the fourth to extend the match. It was tied at 8-8, but Grafton won four in a row, a stretch that included back-to-back aces.
The Spoilers took nine points in a 10-point span to take over. Devils Lake had a pair of late 3-0 runs, but it wasn’t quite enough.
“They really fought hard,” Hanlan said. “I mean, they’re working hard. They’re trying. They want to win. They’re making adjustments. They’re fighting hard.”
After the teams dueled all night, Grafton had the last laugh. The Spoilers took the first six points of the fifth set.
Devils Lake could only trim the deficit as close as 10-4 before Grafton won five of the last seven points. The 15-6 defeat put the match on ice.
In the Firebirds’ last four losses, they’ve fallen by a combined score of 12-7. That includes a set victory against Carrington, the No. 5-ranked team in Class A.
But with three fifth-set losses, they have nothing to show for it in the win column.
“Going five sets shows that you’re gonna keep fighting,” Hanlan said. “We’ve just got to be more consistent on offense — and maybe our serve-receive we could clean up a little bit, too.”
Devils Lake now takes a breather from region play. It hosts Rugby on Tuesday and Nedrose on Oct. 6, with three tournaments sprinkled in there.
The Firebirds return to region play at home on Oct. 13, when they host Hillsboro/Central Valley, whom they lost to in five sets on Sept. 18.
