Travis Kriens, KORN News Radio Sports Director
MITCHELL, S.D. — Mitchell Kernels volleyball continued their late-season surge Tuesday night, sweeping Huron 3-0 (27-25, 25-17, 25-23) to improve to 15-5 on the year. The win snapped a six-match losing streak against the Tigers and kept Mitchell perfect at home this season at 8-0.
Mitchell’s balanced attack once again proved too much for Huron to handle. Senior Audrey Miller led the Kernels with 10 kills, while eighth-grader Nia Talley added nine and senior setter Addie Siemsen chipped in seven kills to go along with 28 assists.
On defense, senior libero Kenna Soulek anchored the back row with 19 digs, while senior middle blocker Kambyl Wede added four blocks.
Huron’s Aly Davis led all hitters with 16 kills, but the Tigers couldn’t overcome Mitchell’s efficiency and home-court momentum.
With the win, Mitchell stays at seventh in AA seed points.
“These last four matches for us are going to be a battle every single night,” Mitchell head coach Deb Thill said. “It’s always tough playing Huron. If you look at the seed points, five through 10 could go a lot of different ways. It’s going to come down to the final match of the regular season for everybody.”
Huron head coach Joshua Lien credited the Kernels’ depth and execution.
“Mitchell has a talented team and a lot of players they can spread the ball to,” Lien said. “But that’s only half the battle — the other half is trying to stop them, and that’s tough to do.”
With the victory, the Kernels have now won nine of their last 10 matches.
Mitchell will look to keep the momentum rolling when they host Sioux Falls Washington on Thursday at 7 p.m. on KORN News Radio FM 101.3/AM 1490 and KORNRadio.com