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The NRHEG volleyball team started its postseason journey Thursday night against St. Clair in the Section 2AA tournament.

The No. 3 seeded Panthers dominated the No. 6 seed Cyclones, cruising to a 3-0 win and into the second round of the tournament.

NRHEG topped St. Clair in the first set 25-18, 25-20 in the second set, and went on to dominate in  the third and final set, winning 25-7.

Leading the Panthers in the kills category was Sophie Stork with 15. Erin Jacobson was also in double digits with 10. Bree Ihrke, Sarah George and Rhys Martin combined for 10 kills.

Sidney Schultz led the way in digs with 15 from the back row. Stork added six herself, while Faith Nielsen, Hallie Schultz, Jacobson and Bailey Ihrke combined for five.

Hallie Schultz put up an impressive 29 assists in the Panthers straight-sets opening round win.

“Great to get a win at playoff time,” said head coach Onika Peterson. “The girls competed for every single point. Our defense moved well and had some huge saves for us. They kept our quick-tempo offense moving all night. Offensively we had a lot of kids getting some big swings which was great to see.”

The Panthers move to 15-12 on the season and will play in the second round against Maple River  at 7:45 p.m. Monday at Mankato East High School. 

The two teams met in the regular season finale, in which the Panthers won 3-1.