Photo by Cameron Carlson
By Mojo Hill
The Lake Region State College volleyball team wrapped up the regular season with back-to-back wins this week.
The Royals locked up second place in the Mon-Dak Athletic Conference.
LRSC had hit a slight slump, with three straight losses to Miles Community College, North Dakota State College of Science and Jamestown JV. But the Royals took down Williston State College 3-0 at home on Tuesday, then finished their conference schedule with a 3-0 win over Dakota College at Bottineau on the road.
In Tuesday’s win over fourth-place WSC, Anne Stroklund led the Royals with 10 kills. As of Friday, she ranks second in the Mon-Dak in kills with 326, behind only the 354 from NDSCS’s Tessa Jacobson.
Katie Leece and Kaitlyn Erickstad each provided eight kills. Though the Royals are still missing Madison Samuelson, they’ve gotten a balanced attack from their hitters — a group that also includes Lexie Shearer and Daisy Mabin.
LRSC dominated the Tetons in a 25-14 opening set. It took each of the next two 25-21.
The Royals went up to Bottineau the next day, Wednesday, and swept the last-place Lumberjacks. The Jacks fell to a miserable 0-23 on the season, including 0-10 in conference play. They’ve now lost 13 sets in a row and 48 of their last 49.
Last time these teams met, the first two sets were closer than LRSC would have preferred, while the third set was a beatdown.
This time, it took only one close set before the Royals put the hammer down. They took the opening set just 25-22. But they rounded out the match with 25-12 and 25-17 wins to earn the sweep.
Stroklund was not recorded as having played in this match. Shearer led LRSC with nine kills, while Marianna De Pombo stepped in with six. Leece, Mabin and Erickstad each added five kills. Torri Fee led things in the back with 17 digs.
With a 7-3 conference record, the Royals only trail NDSCS’s 9-1 mark. Their overall record improved to 26-10, giving them the most wins in the Mon-Dak and second-best overall winning percentage.
LRSC finishes the regular season Sunday at noon on the road against Dickinson State JV. The first-round playoff matchup and location are yet to be announced.
Regardless of what happens, the Royals have already eclipsed last year’s win total by 11. They went 15-21 last season and just 2-10 in conference play. Their current .722 win percentage would be the best in the recorded history of the program.
