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DL-B rallies from early hole to top Ray in five games

BURLINGTON – Volleyball matches can sometimes be wildly unpredictable.

The Ray Jays and Des Lacs-Burlington Lakers played such a match Tuesday night in a Class B matchup in Burlington.

Ray, the defending two-time Region 8 champion, showed why it have made it to the state tournament in each of the previous two seasons as it rolled to 25-12 and 25-21 wins in the first two matches.

And it seemed the sweep was in order for the Jays. However, the Lakers had other things in mind as they countered with 25-23, 25-22 and 15-11 wins to close out the match.

“It’s homecoming week,” DL-B coach Tarra Hysjulien said. “So I’m not sure if that was a factor. The girls weren’t in school today. But credit to Ray. They are a scrappy team.”

For Ray, it was a matter of changing things up in that third game.

“I switched things up,” Ray coach Michelle Dolan said of the third game. “It changed the flow. And we let up.”

In the key third game, the Lakers held a 16-7 lead and appeared to be coasting to a comfortable win. The Jays scored nine of the next 10 points to tie it at 17-17. DL-B junior Caitlyn Vogel recorded three kills down the stretch to help the Lakers avoid the sweep.

In the fourth game, serving played a key role in the Lakers’ three-point win. Vogel had three aces in a stretch of five straight serves to help DL-B build a 13-5 lead.

But much like the third game, Ray mounted a rally, pulling to within 20-19, but were never able to take the lead.

“I think we were all sleepy when we came out,” DL-B’s Kayla Schaefer said of the first game. “After that we got closer in the second match.”

Schaefer, who finished the night with 14 kills, says the key to the victory was simple.

“Us coming together,” she said.

Vogel also finished with 14 kills and three aces for DL-B.

Senior Marissa Veach had 22 kills in the loss for Ray, while senior Maari Dolan had 14.

“We came in here and played a tough team,” the Ray coach said. “And played them down to the wire.”

DL-B (7-1) will play at Surrey on Thursday.

“I couldn’t have asked for much better,” Hysjulien said.

Mark Jones covers high school sports and general assignments. Follow him on Twitter @MarkJones27_MDN.

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