MCDONALD'S SWNEWS4U.COM GAME OF THE WEEK (Sept. 22–29)
SWAL VOLLEYBALL: Cuba City 3, Mineral Point 2
By Casey Lindecrantz, Tri-County Press / Republican Journal

Cubans overcome Pointers in five sets
MINERAL POINT — A battle between SWAL powerhouses saw Cuba City come away the victor as it bested Mineral Point on the road on Sept. 24 in five sets, 25–15, 25–20, 22–25, 20–25, 15–10.

“It’s always a marathon when Mineral Point and Cuba City meet up, and for the first time this season,” said Cubans head coach Keri Lawson. “I was impressed with how we came out leading the charge, and keeping Mineral Point on edge to get anything. Brooke [Terpstra’s] serve runs were a big part of that. As expected, Mineral Point woke up and the second set was much closer.”

Terpstra had a team-best five aces over the night for #3-ranked Cuba City (20-5, 5-0) at the #9-ranked Pointers (16–4, 3–1). Also instrumental in helping push the Cubans to a 2–0 set lead were kill leaders Maya Misky (17), Meg Kuepers (12), and Terpstra (9).

“To many, going up 2-0 is all you need to finish out,” said Lawson. “That is a myth. If a team like the Pointers are in that situation, you will see an aggressive attack and the momentum will shift. We did not maintain control of the ball, and long rallies many times earned Mineral Point the point. It took us a lot to get the ball down, swinging just under a .200 attack percentage.”

Cuba City nearly ended the match in the third, taking a late lead due partly to errors from Mineral Point. Unfortunately, the host school rallied, with a lift the Cubans and a kill sending away the third. The fourth saw more sparks from Cuba City as it tried to avoid a fifth set, but the Pointers consistently found a hole in the center of the Cubans’ defense to a 20–16 deficit for the traveling team that elicited a timeout from Lawson. Kuepers slammed down a kill out of the stoppage, followed by a Terpstra ace, before Mineral Point went on a 5–2 run through the fourth’s final rally.

Cuba City came into the fifth on a high note, as Misky and Kuepers combined for a block for the opening point. The Pointers followed with a pair kills combined with a lift from the Cubans to flip the advantage with a buffer. Thankfully, Mineral Point was also its own worst enemy as the host team sent two straight attacks over the Cuba City back court line before committing a four hit penalty to surrender a 4–3 lead.

The back and forth battle proceeded until a Terpstra kill gave her team a 9–7 lead that also forced a Pointers timeout. Mineral Point continued creating its own headaches out of the break as it was responsible for one of the Cubans’ two points to keep the split at two points on a 2–2 run. It wasn’t long before a Mabel Droessler kill along the fan sideline completed a match-winning 6–3 run that put Cuba City in the driver’s seat of the SWAL with a pair of matches remaining.

“The fifth set was anyone’s game,” Lawson said. “It stayed close and once we took a 2-point lead late in the set, the team seemed to lock it in and get to the finish line. This was a big win that will have more meaning in a few weeks.”

Defense and supporting stat leaders included a team-best four blocks from Kuepers, 18 and 15 digs from Terpstra and Misky, respectively, and 43 assists from Emersyn Niles.

Cuba City now has a 1.5-game lead over the Pointers and Fennimore (22–6, 3–1), and a 2-game lead over Riverdale (19–10, 3–2).

All that remains in conference play are a trip to Southwestern (7-19, 1-3) and a home match against Boscobel (1-19, 0-4).

#3-Cuba City 3, #9-Mineral Point 2

(from Thursday, Sept. 24 @ Mineral Point)

Cuba City........25 25 22 20 15

Mineral Point...15 20 25 25 10

Cuba City stat leaders

Kills: Maya Misky 17, Meg Kuepers 12, Brooke Terpstra 9. Aces: Terpstra 5. Blocks: Kuepers 4. Digs: Terpstra 18, Misky 15. Assists: Emersyn Niles 43.