Cougars score rare sweep of Titans

• Tricia Romanyshyn

Press Photo by Dustin Monke Dickinson Trinity junior Katelyn Grinsteinner, left, goes up for an attack as Heart River's Tricia Romanyshyn on Tuesday in a volleyball match at Knights of Columbus Activities Center.

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Heart River picked its spots and Dickinson Trinity made mistakes at moments it couldn’t afford them.

A late rally by the Titans wasn’t enough to keep the Cougars caged, as Heart River held on for a rare victory over Trinity with a 25-18, 25-19, 27-15 sweep during a non-district volleyball match at Knights of Columbus Activities Center.

“I think they totally outplayed us today,” Trinity head coach Rayma Braaten said.

Desiree Johnson had a match-high 12 kills and Karli Northrop added nine as the Cougars pulled out to late leads to secure the first two sets and came back in the third set to win the match.

“It was a great win,” Northrop said. “We had our doubts, but we pulled through. I’m really proud of our team.”

Heart River’s leads were never huge, but they controlled the first two sets with strong play at the net and strong serving.

Senior Shanea Haughtvedt had three straight aces to put the Cougars (12-14) ahead 23-17 in the first set. They won on a Trinity serving error, a mistake that has haunted the Titans.

Heart River held Trinity at arm’s length in the second set and clinched the win on a pair of Johnson kills.

Trinity (17-14) looked to lengthen the match late in the third, fighting back from a 20-16 deficit to take a 22-20 lead after a pair of Alyson Schieno aces, two blocks by Allison Steffan and Katelyn Grinsteinner’s smashing kill.

Schieno had nine kills, three aces and two blocks. Grinsteinner had nine kills and an ace.

“We like to rally back, that’s our thing,” said Trinity junior Gretchen Weir, who had seven kills. “But we need to learn how to keep going strong and really finish.”

Trinity’s lead quickly faded away — and it wasn’t because of anything Heart River did.

Six of the Cougars’ last seven points in the third set came on Trinity errors.

“In the last game, we could not pass the ball,” Braaten said. “Then there were our serves. The last four serves in the third set, we left in the net. We cannot win a game like that.”

Instead, the Cougars did — and they relished in the victory.

“It’s just so fun,” Heart River head coach Hope Volesky said. “Those girls worked their butt off. They deserved it.”

HR 25 25 27 — 3

Trinity 18 19 25 — 0

Kills: HR, Desiree Johnson 12, Karli Northrop 9, Tricia Romanyshyn 3, Alex Poland 3. T, Alyson Schieno 9, Katelyn Grinsteinner 9, Gretchen Weir 7, Katie Dockter 3, Allison Steffan 3, Kennedy Keator 2, Ashley Kerkman 1.

Blocks: HR, Romanyshyn 1. T, Schieno 2, Weir 1, Keator 1.

Aces: HR, Northrop 4, Poland 3, Shanea Haughtvedt 3. T, Schieno 3, Brianna Soehren 2, Dockter 1, Grinsteinner 1.

Digs: HR, Haughtvedt 16, Northrop 11, Poland 8. T, Jillian Stockert 14, Schieno 12, Molly Schweitzer 10, Katelyn Rummel 9, Dockter 9, Grinsteinner 7, Keator 6, Britney Schneider 3.

Assists: HR, Jada Mattson 28, Lacy Obrigewitch 3. T, Dockter 18, Keator 3, Soehren 1.

Records: Trinity 17-14, HR 12-14.

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