2024 Volleyball State Tournament: Day 1 Recap Class AAAA and AAA Quarterfinals

Most of the top seeds advanced on the first day of the Minnesota State High School League’s Girls Volleyball State Tournament on Wednesday, Nov. 6 at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul. 

Opening day featured quarterfinal matches in two of the four enrollment classes. Here’s a look at what happened:

Class AAAA

Lakeville South 3, Apple Valley 0 (25-21, 25-18, 25-17) – Sophomores starred for No. 1 seed Lakeville South as it swept South Suburban Conference foe Apple Valley for the second time this season. Kaelyn Bjorklund tallied 26 assists and nine kills, including set point in a closing 4-1 run in the opener. Classmate Elleora Utecht led the Cougars with 14 kills. Sophomore Ginny Gores had eight kills for Apple Valley, making its first state tournament appearance since 2001.

Roseville Area 3, St. Michael-Albertville 1 (20-25, 28-26, 25-23, 25-23) – Roseville Area dropped the first set and fought off set point in the second to rally past St. Michael-Albertville. Back-to-back kills from sophomore middle blocker Sophia Gholson-Johnson wrapped up the Raiders’ second-set triumph to even the match at 1-1. She later finished off the victory with her 11th kill of the day. All three were assisted by senior setter Kadence Davison, who totaled 48 of them. Senior outside hitter Logan Cregan paced the fourth-seeded Raiders with 16 kills and 17 digs. The Knights got a combined 29 kills from seniors Abigail Hoselton (15) and Gabriella Keefer (14).

Champlin Park 3, Anoka 0 (25-19, 25-17, 25-23) – Champlin Park’s regular-season win over Anoka required five sets, but the No. 2 seed Rebels hit .302 in a sweep at the state tournament. Senior Carly Gilk posted 21 kills to lead the way. Fellow senior Reese Axness had 44 assists. Junior outside hitter Hayden Reeder powered the Tornadoes with a match-high 22 kills.

East Ridge 3, Minnetonka 0 (25-20, 25-18, 25-13) – No. 3 seed East Ridge jumped out to a 9-2 lead in the opening set, setting the tone for a match in which it never trailed. The Raptors produced eight service aces and compiled a .365 attack percentage with a balanced squad. Freshman Brynlee Opland and seniors Adaora Zebulun and Paige Belfield finished with 10 kills apiece while senior Alexis Opland dished 34 assists. Senior Hannah Jackson led the Skippers with 10 kills.

Up next: Thursday’s semifinals begin with Lakeville South (30-2) and St. Michael-Albertville (25-7) at 9 a.m., followed by Champlin Park (29-3) squaring off with East Ridge (25-6) at 11 a.m.

Class AAA

Delano 3, Hermantown 0 (25-15, 25-20, 25-10) – Unbeaten Delano rolled to its 31st straight win as it seeks a return to the title match. Junior Lexi Champeau (24) and senior Riley Mathiowetz (17) teamed up for 41 assists, junior Cassie Wegman had 12 kills and freshman Caitlin Champeau tallied a match-high 18 digs to go with eight kills. Senior Hope Kohanski led Hermantown with nine kills.

Alexandria Area 3, Mahtomedi 0 (25-22, 25-16, 25-20) – Senior Evalynn Eisel served five of Alexandria Area’s eight aces and the fifth-seeded Cardinals were victorious in their first state tournament match since 2009. Junior Hadley Thull had a pair of aces of her own while pounding a match-high 15 kills. Seniors Silvia Graetzer and Kaili Malvey both contributed 10 kills for Mahtomedi.

Marshall 3, Monticello 0 (25-14, 25-16, 25-17) – Reigning state champion Marshall looked right at home in a first-round sweep. Junior outside hitter Reese Drake was the team leader in both kills and digs with 13 apiece. Sophomore Laurel Ryks added 12 kills and juniors Avery Fahl (18) and Brooke Gillingham (12) distributed a combined 30 assists for the No. 2 seed Tigers. Monticello got 11 kills from junior outside hitter Alayna Opatz.

Stewartville 3, Cretin-Derham Hall 1 (23-25, 25-13, 25-19, 25-8) – No. 3 seed Stewartville produced an emphatic response after falling behind 1-0 in the match. The Tigers bolted to an 11-3 lead in the second set, ended the third on a 7-2 run and raced to a 14-3 advantage in the fourth. Senior Katherine Klavetter was one of four Tigers with double-digit digs, totaling 31 to help stave off the Raiders. Junior Ella Theobald amassed a match-high 13 kills. Senior Sydney Elliott led Cretin-Derham Hall with 11.

Up next: Friday is semifinal day for Class AAA. Delano (31-0) and Alexandria Area (21-10) get started at 9 a.m., then it’s Marshall (27-6) against Stewartville (27-4) at 11 a.m.