By Donny Henn
Post-Bulletin, Rochester MN 

The high-flying Rochester Century volleyball team wasn't exactly in need of a confidence boost, but the Panthers got one anyway Thursday night at the Century gym.

Century parlayed a mistake-filled opening game by Northfield into unstoppable momentum, and the No. 1 seeded Panthers cruised to a quick 3-0 win over the fourth-seeded Raiders in the semifinal round of the Section One, Class AAA tournament.

It took just an hour for Century to decide the matter, winning 25-13, 25-19, 25-16 to gain a spot in the section final for the first time in program history.

Century (22-6) will meet No. 2 seed Farmington (16-6) at 7 p.m. Saturday at Mayo Civic Center Taylor Arena. Farmington also won its semifinal match in three games over No. 6 seed Faribault.

"I'm not surprised we played that well," said Century outside hitter Brittany Weidman. "We came in knowing we were going to win."

Century had edged Northfield in five games during the regular season, but this match bore little resemblance according to Raiders head coach Tim Torstenson.

Northfield got off to sluggish start and Century capitalized, scoring 15 points in the first game on hitting errors and serving errors by the Raiders. Century won going away, scoring 10 of the last 11 points.

"I think Century played well, but we didn't play anywhere near as well (as in the first meeting)," said Torstenson. "You can't have the number of errors we had and expect to stay in it."

Torstenson said it all began with Northfield's struggle in cleanly handling Century's serves. The Panthers finished with a 7-3 edge in aces.

"(Century) served well, but to be honest we didn't pass well," he said. "We didn't pass well the whole game, and because of that we couldn't get into our offense."

Northfield put up a better fight in the second game and led 12-9 when junior outside hitter Lisa Atkinson scored on a block against Century's Jessie Hazelton. Game two was tied at 13, 14, 15 and 16, before the Panthers reeled off five unanswered points to gain control.

Weidman delivered a kill from the left side to start the run, and then the hard-hitting junior had two ace serves. Kathryn Kuecker scored the last three kills, smashing game-point from the left side after a long volley.

"I think we played well as a team and really stepped it up," said Kuecker, a senior and third-year varsity player. "We weren't nervous at all, just really, really excited."

Century never trailed in the third game. The Panthers surged to a 9-4 lead after Weidman served three straight points, including another ace.

Century seized control with a 9-1 run, pushing its lead from 11-7 to 20-8. Weidman had four kills in the match-breaking run, and Katie Gannon had four points serving including two aces.

Weidman led Century with 11 kills and three ace serves; Kuecker had seven kills and two aces; Gannon had 11 digs and three aces; set assists were divided by Maggie Benda with 13 and Claire Richards with 11.

Century head coach Bob Koerner said the Panthers did a good job defensively against Northfield's best hitter, 6-foot-1 senior Josie Dockstader. Century middle hitter Sarah Becker had eight blocks, most against Dockstader.

"We knew (Dockstader) was going to get her kills, but the blocking we did in the first game really set the tempo for the match," Koerner said. "That allowed us to get a little momentum going."

Koerner said it was a mental bonus for Century to win in three games, especially after learning that Farmington had done the same in the other semifinal.

"I think it's very important," he said. "It's a confidence thing at this point in the season, to know that you are able to play up to that level."

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