The NRHEG volleyball team hosted Tri-City United Monday night with hopes of upping its season record back to .500.

The Panthers battled back after trailing two sets to one, winning the final two sets to beat the Titans 3-2.

NRHEG handled the first set with ease, disposing of the Titans 24-16.

The second set, however,  was another story. The Titans used their first-set loss as motivation to storm back and win the second set 25-19.

It was deja vu for the Panthers in the third set, when the Titans won again by the same score.

With the match on the line, NRHEG came away with a narrow 25-21 victory to force a fifth set.

The final set was the closest of the night. Neither team was able  to pull more than a few points ahead of the other. The Panthers were the first to 15 points, but the Titans were right behind with 14. Needing to win the set by two, the Panthers came away with the point they needed to take the set and match, 16-14.

“We came out strong in the first set, but struggled in set two and three,” said head coach Onika Peterson. “We had a hard time passing the ball, which hurt our offense. The girls came out and rallied in the fourth and fifth set and were able to get the win in set five. Says a lot about the girls that they didn’t roll over. They worked together and fought for the win. Great to see the grit come out tonight.”

The Panthers climb to 14-14 on the season and sit at 2-4 in the Gopher Conference. They will be back on the court Thursday, when they host the Eagles of Maple River. They play their final game of the season Monday, when they play Medford.

Match results

NRHEG 3, Tri-City United 2

NRHEG def. Tri-City United 25-16, 19-25, 19-25, 25-21, 16-14

NRHEG stats: Sidney Schultz 11 digs, 1 ace; Anna Jacobson 3 kills, 2 digs, 3 blocks; Katie Cliff 3 kills, 3 digs; Grace Tufte 35 assists, 3 kills, 9 digs, 1 ace; Kendall Johnson 10 kills, 16 digs, 2 blocks, 1 ace; Sophie Stork 16 kills, 8 digs, 2 aces; Erin Baker 6 kills, 2 assists, 1 dig, 1 block; Bree Ihrke 2 kills, 1 block, 1 ace; Cambria Nissen 18 digs, 1 ace