The Hornets swept St. Francis and defeated Zimmerman in a thrilling five-set match to punch their ticket to the Section 5AAA Finals. 

The playoff run started last Wednesday when #3 seed Big Lake hosted #6 seed St. Francis in the opening round matchup. When these two met in the regular season it took all five sets for Big Lake to win, but the Hornets were in control the entire time in this one. They took the opening set 25-20 before eking out a 30-28 victory in the second. And they closed out the match with a dominating 25-15 win in the third set.

Emma Nagorski led the team with 10 kills and had 12 digs. Madison Reed finished with a team-high 14 digs, three kills, two assists, and two ace serves. Marissa Reed added 10 digs, nine kills, four ace serves, and two blocks. Leading the team in assists were Kamrynn Tschritter and Ashley Fitzgibbons with 12 apiece. 

Big Lake’s opponent in the semifinal game was the #2 seed Zimmerman Thunder. The two teams did not meet in the regular season, but each side got their money’s worth in the lone meeting. Zimmerman cruised to a 25-17 win in the opening set, but the Hornets were able to answer right back. They took the next two sets by scores of 25-22 and 25-18. The Thunder would not go away quietly as they won the fourth set 25-17 to force a deciding fifth set. After four sets of neither team gaining too much of an edge, and with each team’s season on the line, it was the Hornets who were able to take control. The team scored another close victory 15-11 and dispatched their opponents 3-2. 

Marissa Reed had another great game, leading the team in kills and blocks with 18 and nine respectively while also adding nine digs. Emma Nagorski also had a strong performance with 23 digs, 12 kills, four blocks, and one ace serve. Madison Reed had 15 digs, eight kills, three blocks, one ace serve, and one set assist. Ashley Fitzgibbons contributed 19 assists and nine digs, while Kamrynn Tschritter was responsible for 16 assists, two digs, and one ace serve. Riley Sofka finished with 14 digs and Izzy Moudry had five digs, two blocks, and two kills. 

The team will now take on the Monticello Magic at Osseo High School on Wednesday November 1st at 5 pm.