SENECA – The Shullsburg Miners varsity volleyball team wrapped up a busy week on the court by placing third at the 2012 Seneca Invitational on Saturday, Sept. 8.
    After getting swept in a pair of Six Rivers West matches during the week, the Lady Miners (2-2 in SRW, 6-6 overall) kicked off their weekend by finishing second during pool play at the tournament with a 1-2 record.
    The Miners swept Boscobel, 25-18, 25-12, and lost a pair of 2-1 decisions to Riverdale, 22-25, 25-20, 12-15, and DeSoto, 25-22, 23-25, 8-15.
    DeSoto finished pool play with a 3-0 record to advance to the championship match, and the Pirates went on to claim the title with a 25-13, 25-13 win over the host Indians.
    Boscobel and Riverdale were tied with Shullsburg after pool play, but the Miners advanced to the third-place match based on points.
    Facing conference rival Cassville for third-place, the Miners dropped set one, 20-25, but bounced back with wins of 25-23 and 15-12 to end up third on the day.
    Holly Rennert led the Miners with 40 attack kills, while Nicole Champion distributed 30 assists and Rayvn Gille tallied 73 digs on the day.
    Emily Morrissey recorded seven service aces and eight blocks for Shullsburg. Champion, Rennert and Stephanie Roberts each added two aces.
    At Shullsburg, on Tuesday, Sept. 4, the visiting River Ridge Timberwolves (2-1) handed the Lady Miners their first loss in conference play by rolling to a 25-12, 25-20, 25-16, Six Rivers West sweep.
    Blaire Lute led Shullsburg with 13 kills and 13 digs, while Nicole Champion handed out 13 assists and Rayvn Gille served up a pair of aces for the hosts.
    At Potosi, on Thursday, Sept. 6, the host Chieftains (3-0) held on to the top spot in the SRW standings by sweeping Shullsburg, 25-22, 25-19, 25-21, in a key league match.
    Blaire Lutes tallied eight kills and 25 digs for the Miners, while Stephanie Roberts registered seven assists and an ace to lead the team.
    Shullsburg returns to action with a SRW contest at Benton on Tuesday, Sept. 18.

Shullsburg….  12     20     16
River Ridge…  25     25     25

Shullsburg…  22     19     21
Potosi………  25     25     25

SENECA INVITATIONAL
Championship: De Soto def. Seneca, 25-13, 25-23.
Third-Place: Shullsburg def. Cassville, 20-25, 25-23, 15-12.

Pool A: Seneca 3-0, Cassville 2-1, Brookwood 1-2, Riverdale Varsity Reserve 0-3.
Pool B: De Soto 3-0, Shullsburg 1-2, Boscobel 1-2, Riverdale 1-2.
At Seneca HS, Saturday, Sept. 8