The rematch is set.
A year ago, Byron kept Stewartville out of the Section One, Class A volleyball championship match by knocking off the Tigers in the West Subsection 1A final.
Just less than two weeks ago, Stewartville kept Byron from claiming an outright Hiawatha Valley League championship by beating the Bears, at Byron, in their regular-season matchup.
As the top two seeds in West Subsection 1AA, it's no stunner that Byron and Stewartville will square off once again. This time, each team's season is on the line, as they play for the subsection championship at 7:30 p.m. Thursday at the Mayo Civic Center Arena.
Top-seeded Stewartville advanced to the subsection final with a 23-25, 25-12, 25-17, 25-15 victory against No. 4 seed Triton on Saturday. Byron, the No. 2 seed in the subsection, topped third seed Kasson-Mantorville, 19-25, 25-17, 25-16, 26-24.
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After dropping the opening game of its match against Triton, Stewartville responded with a balanced attack to sweep the next three games.
Hannah Tapp (13 kills, four blocks) and Lindsay Blahnik (12 kills, 1 block) led the charge for the Tigers (23-5). Lisa Flynn had a team-high 13 digs, while Danielle DeGeus had a good all-around match with 38 set assists, seven kills, six digs and two ace serves.
Abby Buehler and Erica Bryngelson each had eight kills to lead Triton, and Taylor MacVey added 25 assists. The Cobras finished their season with a 22-8 record.
Byron improved to 23-6 with its victory. The Bears were led by Erika McRoberts, with 14 kills, three digs, and three aces. Jordan Price added a match-high 25 digs, while Karlee Johnson had 11 kills and six digs. Setter Jillian Krier had 42 assists.
• In East Subsection 1AA, Three Rivers Conference rivals Caledonia and Chatfield will meet for the championship at 6 p.m. Thursday.
Chatfield, seeded second, survived a tight five-game battle with No. 3 St. Charles. The Gophers (21-8) turned the tables on the Saints (10-13), who defeated Chatfield in five games when the teams met during the regular season, back on Sept. 16.
Saturday's match was close throughout, with Chatfield prevailing 29-27, 16-25, 21-25, 25-19, 15-9.
Caledonia, the top seed and defending subsection champion, swept fourth-seeded Lake City 25-14, 25-20, 25-19. Amber Sorenson had nine kills and Maria Fruechte added eight to pace the Warriors (23-6). Katie Goetzinger added 20 digs and Lindsay Gran had 28 assists.
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Lake City (11-14) was led by Alexa Blair, with seven kills and 10 digs.
Caledonia won the regular season meeting against Chatfield in four games on Sept. 30, 28-26, 17-25, 25-21, 25-23.
