SPEARFISH, S.D. – Julia Billington recorded double-digit kills as Spearfish rallied from a one-set deficit to defeat Rapid City Central in a season-opening five-set volleyball thriller Tuesday night.
The Lady Spartans improved to 1-0 on the season with a 25-19, 22-25, 22-25, 25-23, 15-8 victory over the Lady Cobblers.
Spearfish came out firing in the opening set, using a 6-0 run to build early momentum. Rapid City Central battled back to pull within three points, but the Lady Spartans maintained control and closed out the set, 25-19.
The momentum shifted in the second and third sets as the Lady Cobblers took command. Central never trailed in the second set, earning a 25-22 win before repeating the score in the third. Strong serving and consistent pressure disrupted Spearfish’s passing game and limited the Lady Spartans’ offensive opportunities.
Facing a 2-1 deficit, Spearfish responded in a tightly contested fourth set. The Lady Spartans built a 21-14 advantage, but Central mounted a late rally to cut the lead to one point. Addie Keller delivered key plays down the stretch as Spearfish held on for a 25-23 victory to force a deciding fifth set.
The Lady Spartans seized control early in the final frame. After both teams struggled with serving errors to open the set, Spearfish used a 4-0 run to build a 7-3 lead. Effective serving from Finley Bouman, combined with kills from Megan Markovetz and Keller, helped Spearfish pull away. A series of Central hitting errors allowed the Lady Spartans to close out the set, 15-8, and secure the match victory.
Spearfish head coach Shelbie Richards praised her team’s resilience after overcoming adversity throughout the match.
“We did everything tonight,” Richards said. “We tried some new things and switched liberos, but it was a team effort to get the job done tonight.”
Spearfish will travel to the Huron Invitational on Friday, where the Lady Spartans are scheduled to face a challenging field that includes Class B No. 1 Chester Area, Class A powerhouse Dell Rapids, and Class AA opponents Huron and Mitchell. Rapid City Central will head to Aberdeen and Pierre at the end of this week.
Spearfish will head to Hill City next Tuesday for a BHC conference match against Hill City. That game will be broadcast live on KDSJ Radio, kdsj980.com, the KDSJ Sports Mobile app, and on KDSJ-TV on YouTube, and KDSJ’s Facebook Live.
Rewatch here: https://www.youtube.com/live/unNf1RFEyRk?si=ALJQZSy3McjSX2Fr
