BP and NRHEG compete during school hours
Blooming Prairie setter Claire Schwarz prepares to return a shot over the net in front of a packed Blooming Prairie student section. Staff photo by Johnnie Phillips
Fans who checked in on Blooming Prairie and NRHEG volleyball schedules last week might have assumed a 1:30 p.m. start time for a volleyball game between the two sides was a typo, but it was not.
The two Gopher Conference competitors brought the action to their student bodies during school hours with NRHEG bussing in fans mid-day and Blooming Prairie hosting its entire student body from grades five through 12.
“We had around 530 students in the gym for the game. Some of the schools in our conference have done this for the past few years. I got the idea when I saw our homecoming schedule and saw that we had two games during the week. I asked Principal Staloch if we could do it and he said, ‘Yes, reach out to NRHEG.’ I didn’t really tell anyone we were doing it until the end of the school year and even the beginning of this year, because a lot of people thought it was a typo,” said Blooming Prairie Activities Director Ali Mach.
According to Mach, Blooming Prairie hosted around 530 of its students for the game, making the student section quite possibly the school’s largest ever for any sporting event.
As the teams set up for the opening serve, fans on both sides of the stands began rumbling their feet in what felt like a mild earthquake in the Awesome Blossoms’ new gym.
“We were a little nervous when they all started jumping up and down on those bleachers. We didn’t know how much they could handle. But the excitement was incredible,” said Mach.
Blooming Prairie and NRHEG battled back and forth in a close first set, but it was the Panthers who came out on top 25-22 to take an early 1-0 lead.
The set win had all 75 NRHEG students in the stands fired up and allowed the much smaller visiting crowd to have themselves heard.
However, the momentum was short-lived as Blooming Prairie retaliated with a 25-18 win in the second set to tie the match and fire up the home stands.
Both teams used all three minutes of rest between sets to make adjustments and catch their breath, but when the third set began, NRHEG started to take over.
The Panthers looked sharp in a 25-15 third set and put Blooming Prairie on its heels entering the fourth frame.
The Awesome Blossoms had some moments in the fourth set, but the Panthers were the more polished team taking down the final set 25-18 and winning the match.
“We knew coming in that it would be a tough environment to play in. We knew how loud it was going to be in here. Overall, we did well. We made a few adjustments and communicated well, even though I know it was hard for them to hear out there with the crowd. We still have some things to work on. This season has been a roller coaster, but I’m proud of the way our team played today,” said NRHEG Head Coach Bethany Tennis.
Blooming Prairie’s week ended with the loss, meanwhile, NRHEG traveled to Tri-City United high School over the weekend for an invitational tournament.
The Panthers earned a 1-1-1 record with a 2-0 win over Fairmont, a 1-1 tie against Glencoe-Silver Lake and a 1-2 loss to Lake Crystal-Wellcome Memorial.