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After a three-set victory over St. Clair in the first round, the NRHEG volleyball team found itself matching up with No. 7 seeded Maple River in the Section 2AA quarterfinals.

After dropping a close first set to the Eagles, the Panthers gathered themselves and bounced back to win three straight sets and take the victory 3-1.

It was a close first set that saw the Panthers lose by just three points 25-22 before coming back to dominate in the second and third sets, winning them 25-18 and 25-13, respectively.

It was another close set in the fourth, but this time it was NRHEG coming out with a much deserved win 25-23.

Sophie Stork was the lone Panther with double digit kills, recording 10. Erin Jacobson and Bree Ihrke each had six, while Hallie Schultz, Sarah George and Rhys Martin combined for 10. Hallie Schultz had another impressive night in the assists category, putting up 28. Sidney Schultz led in digs with 12, while  Stork had nine, Jacobson had six and Hallie Schultz and Bailey Ihrke combined for three.

“I continue to be impressed with this group of girls,” said head coach Onika Peterson. “They fought for every single point tonight. There were a couple of times they could have stayed down, but they picked each other up, competed and finished strong. It was great to see. We haven’t been to a sub-section championship in six years. We are excited to have the opportunity to be back. Anything can happen. We need to play Panther volleyball and play our game.”

The Panthers improve to 16-12 overall and advance to take on Waterville-Elysian-Morristown in the semifinals. The two teams met one other time this season, which saw the Buccaneers win 3-0 in the Panthers third match of the season.