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BATTLE ROYALE: Blue Devils Rally Past Eskymos
 Click the thumbnails to see pictures and videos, and to hear comments from both teams' head coaches. ESCANABA---The Sault Ste. Marie Blue Devils and Escanaba Eskymos hooked up in an intense, marathon volleyball match Wednesday night in Escanaba. The Eskymos won the first two sets on Senior Night, but the Blue Devils rallied to take the next three sets to win, 3-2.  It was the Blue Devils' second trip to Escanaba in five days after they came to the Esky Elks Invitational on Saturday, and won the championship, sweeping the Eskymos in the final. But this match was much more intense, and went right down to the wire after a strong Eskymo start. "We put two great, great sets together in the first and second," said Escanaba Coach Adam Lambert, who's team suffered its first dual match loss of the season. "We had a lot of momentum, and we were with every game. We got stuck in a coiple of rotations in sets tree and four, and I really thought we had it in that fifth set. But you know what? That was great. I'm not going to complain at all. These girls did a heck of a job." "I think they just proved they wanted it a little more," Sault High Coach Stephanie Lynn said. "Our hitters really clicked. Kenzie Bell was really good for us, especially in those last couple of sets. Our serving went on runs. And at the end there, our defense decided that they really wanted to pass and play the game. That's what tore us apart earlier, was our serve receive and defense and communication. But at the end, they put it all together. I'm proud of the girls because Escanaba played tough tonight."  "She had our number," Lynn said of Stalboerger. "Claire (Erickson) didn't get as many balls as she usually does. But our outsides, Kenzie Bell, really stepped up in that position when Claire wasn't able to get as many looks." Escanaba got off to a strong start in each of the first two sets, and had to hang on to get the win in both. In the second set, the Eskymos really had it going, as Bink had two back-to-back blocks at the net that put Escanaba in front, 20-10. The Eskymos weathered a furious Sault rally that included a seven-point run, to grab control of the match, 25-23. But the Blue Devils dominated the third set, 25-14. In the fourth set, Escanaba led, 14-8, but with Stalboerger on the bench due to the rotation down the stretch, the Blue Devils were able to rally again for a 25-21 win, sending the match to a fifth set.  The Blue Devils responded to take a 14-11 lead with Bell and Hannah Maurer scoring, and the Eskymos saved two match points with Aleaha Lambert serving. The Blue Devils, though, put it away as Erickson got free for a cross-court spike that ended the match. "That was a lot of fun," Coach Lambert said. "We knew that Division One Sault Ste. Marie coming over was going to be a challenge for us, and it was." And what about his seniors? "I've got four great gals who have played a lot of volleyball together," Lambert said. "They came out and they did well."  |
