MCDONALD'S SWNEWS4U.COM GAME OF THE WEEK (Oct. 13–20)
SIX RIVERS WEST VOLLEYBALL: #6 Shullsburg 3, #4 Highland 2
By Casey Lindecrantz, Tri-County Press

Shullsburg returns to the top of the Six Rivers West for first time in six years

SHULLSBURG — The goal was relatively straightforward for Shullsburg — become conference champions. What the Miners couldn’t plan was needing a 5-set marathon to win over Highland on Oct. 13.

The battle of the titans in the Six Rivers West didn’t feature a losing score less than 22 points in each of the first four sets, with the #7-ranked Cardinals (21–4, 11–1) also enjoyed a lead across much of the same period.

Things in the first set came to a head as a serve error and lifting from Highland gave the #6-ranked Miners (21–4, 11-1) a 22–21 lead, forcing a Cardinals’ timeout. The traveling team came out of the break with a kill, but Chloe Thyen came in and slammed down a kill to break the tie, followed by an ace from Brianna Starich. A 24–22 advantage elicited Highland’s second timeout, resulting in another Cardinals’ point. Fortunately, Chloe Thyen came in clutch with a set-sealing kill, 25–23.

Shullsburg rolled through the early part of the second set, partly on the hot hands of Chloe Thyen. She was responsible for each of the Miners’ first three points with two kills and a block, complimented by a Meadow Wiegel kill and a pair of Highland errors. A 6–0 lead for Shullsburg saw the Cardinals burn their first timeout, and the break did little at first for them. Highland came out with a pair of attacking errors followed by a Chloe Thyen kill before the Cardinals’ offense got into gear. They quickly trimmed the Miners’ lead to 9–6 ahead of a Shullsburg timeout. 

Highland proceeded to barely outpace the Miners as the teams traded points, with runs of more than a couple points rare, to a 21–18 split favoring Shullsburg. Chants of “Coach is rattled” emanated from the student section, but the noise only seemed to fuel the Cardinals following a regrouping timeout. They posted four straight points, mostly on errors from the Miners along with an ace to flip the lead. Highland’s side of the court erupted at the lead change, and it rode the confidence boost to a 26–24 set win. 

The Cardinals’ confidence was high, and it opened the third frame on a 9–4 run, with Shullsburg responsible for just one of its points thanks to a Meadow Wiegel kill. The Miners weren’t content to let Highland run away with the set, and Kallie Timmerman got Shullsburg back into the green with a set-over for a kill. Courtney Thyen followed immediately after with a block, and the Miners were on a sprint to the end of the set. Chloe Thyen added a pair of kills in an otherwise error-filled run as Shullsburg got to a 14–11 deficit. 

The split was largely the same as both squads crossed the 20-point threshold, but the Miners had a late, 3-point push thanks to a kill from Adaline Woodworth to give her squad its first lead of the set, 24–23. Woodworth would then end up sending the set away on a kill, 25–23.

The Cardinals were poised to take the fourth set through the early rallies, as they completed a 14–9 run finished by a trio of errors from Shullsburg, and a pair of Highland kills. Fortunately, the Cardinals squandered their 7-point advantage. Chloe Thyen and Isabelle Wiegel tallied consecutive kills on top of a Highland error. A pair of Cardinals’ points looked to keep the first-placed squad in the West with the advantage, but another Chloe Thyen kill alongside her and Timmerman meeting an attack at the net had other plans. 

Highland’s advantage wasn’t as resolute, and a 5–2 run found the Miners within a point of the Cardinals, 20–19. Shullsburg pressed Highland, and a kill from Courtney Thyen,  as well as an ace from Leah Mullikin, gave the Miners their first lead, 21–20, since the opening rallies. 

Highland flipped the lead once more on a 3-point run, before trading blows on serve errors with Shullsburg. The fourth came to a head as a Miners attacking error at the net sent away the set, 25–22.

The forced fifth set initially looked to finish favoring the Cardinals as they opened on an 8–5 run and a Shullsburg timeout. Highland came out of the break and hit a serve well under the net to put the ball in the Miners’ court. They took the opportunity and ran wild. Chloe Thyen tallied a pair of kills and a block quickly flipped the lead, 9–8, with another kill followed by a Cardinals’ 4-hit error after an ensuing timeout from Highland. The Cardinals then got off a kill, a block, and an ace to tie the game, 11–11, along with a Shullsburg stoppage. 

Chloe Thyen broke the tie with a kill out of the break ahead of a pair of Highland errors. Rather than letting the game slip away, the Miners left no doubt with a kill to win the fifth, 15–11.

“Against Highland, we definitely talked about keeping errors to a minimum especially on the service line, and hitting,” Shullsburg head coach Russell Hamm said. “Kallie Timmerman did a great job running the offense and Chloe Thyen had an amazing night attacking and blocking very well. Courtney Thyen had a great night hitting and blocking very well, too. Having McKinley Russell injured and out for the season was a big concern, and we needed players to step up and play well — that’s what they did.”

The Miners had several high-performers in the win, including a record-breaking performance from Chloe Thyen with 28 kills. She posted a triple-double on the night with a complimenting 12 blocks and 14 digs. Meanwhile, Kallie Timmerman was all over the court as she posted a staggering 48 assists and 16 digs. Adeline Woodworth paced the service game with a trio of assists, while Isabelle Wiegel’s 41 digs led all athletes.

The regular season work wasn’t done for Shullsburg as it remained home for a season-closing win over River Ridge (12–10, 8–4) in straight sets on Oct. 15, 25–13, 25–17, 25–18.

“We knew River Ridge would be difficult, so we had to get a lead as soon as possible, but they weren’t going along with that plan,” Hamm said. “Our defense started coming around, and Courtney Thyen was in beast mode with 17 kills and 6 blocks. In the end, River Ridge started struggling and our players took advantage of that to secure the win.”

Top performers included Courtney Thyen (15 kills), Timmerman (34 assists, 3 aces), Chloe Thyen (6 blocks), and Woodworth (23 digs).

The result guaranteed a share of the conference title for the Miners. 

“This is what we had for a goal this season is to win a conference championship,” Hamm said. “That first loss we had at Highland (on Aug. 25) made it a long road to this last victory.”