Volleyball: Lakers lose 5-set nail biter to Byron in state third-place final

St. Paul, Minn. (KDLM) – On Saturday night at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, the Laker volleyball team suffered a defeat in five sets against the Byron Bears (25-16, 25-19, 23-25, 18-25, and 13-15). Despite winning the first two sets and being in the lead in the third, Detroit Lakes couldn’t close out the game against the Bears. However, the fourth-place finish in the tournament is the best finish ever achieved by the Laker Volleyball program.

The Detroit Lakes Laker Volleyball Team smiles with their state tournament plaque after finishing in 4th place, the best season finish in program history, on Nov. 11, 2023 at Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul. (Charlie Newland / KDLM)

In the first set, the Lakers and the Bears were closely matched. There were seven tie scores and five lead changes. Grace Gunderson scored five kills in the set, leading the Lakers to victory. The Bears’ five errors also contributed to their loss.

The second set was equally intense, with nine tie scores. However, the Lakers broke the tie at 16-16 thanks to a Grace Gunderson kill. They went on to outscore the Bears 9-3 to win the set.

The third set proved to be the turning point of the match. Detroit Lakes was leading 21-18 when Byron called a timeout. After the timeout, the Bears scored five straight points and won the set 25-23.

With the momentum on their side, Byron never trailed in the fourth set and quickly jumped out to a 9-3 lead. The Lakers struggled to regain control of the game.

In the fifth set, Byron took a 3-0 lead, but the Lakers managed to tie the game at 3-3. The score was tied nine times, and there were four lead changes. Detroit Lakes built an 11-9 lead, but Byron called a timeout, which shifted the momentum back in their favor. Out of the timeout, Byron tied the game at 12-12 and closed out the match with a kill by Zoe Dearborn.

The Lakers will bid farewell to five seniors from this year’s team, including Helena Daggett, Rylee Johnson, Ava Jones, Sidney Borgmann, and Grace Gunderson.