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Hermantown needed 60 points to settle the second set Wednesday night. Once the Hawks finally did, the match changed with it.
After dropping a tight opening set, Hermantown outlasted Proctor 31-29 in a pivotal second set and controlled the final two to earn a 3-1 Lake Superior Conference volleyball victory.
Proctor won the opener 27-25, but Hermantown responded with the extended second-set victory before closing out the match 25-21 and 25-18.
Kylee Stokke directed the Hawks' offense with 45 set assists and added three ace serves, repeatedly putting Hermantown's hitters in position to attack. Audra Schott led the Hawks with 15 kills, while Lilah Conley delivered an all-around performance with 12 kills and a match-high 28 digs.
Phoebe Sorenson added three ace serves for Hermantown.
Proctor's Reagan Rodberg was the most productive attacker on the floor, finishing with a match-high 21 kills while adding 16 digs. Izzy Jauhola had 37 set assists and two ace serves for the Rails, while Alexis Vogel also served two aces.
The match turned in the second set.
Proctor had already demonstrated it could win the close points by taking the opener 27-25, and the second developed into an even more demanding test. Hermantown eventually survived 31-29, tying the match and taking away the momentum Proctor had established in the first set.
The Hawks did not give it back.
Hermantown separated late enough to take the third set 25-21, then produced its most decisive set of the night in the fourth. The Hawks won 25-18 to complete a three-set response after losing the opener.
Stokke's 45 assists reflected Hermantown's offensive balance. Schott supplied the team-high 15 kills, but Conley's 12 gave the Hawks another consistent attacking option while her 28 digs helped Hermantown withstand Rodberg and the Proctor offense.
The victory sends Hermantown into a busy stretch of its schedule. The Hawks are scheduled to compete Saturday at the North Branch Invitational before returning to Lake Superior Conference and regional competition with road matches at Greenway on Tuesday and Hibbing on Thursday, Sept. 17.
Hermantown then heads to the Duluth East Invitational on Saturday, Sept. 19, giving the Hawks four competition dates in eight days.
Wednesday's victory gave Hermantown exactly the kind of match that can matter during that stretch. The Hawks lost a two-point opening set, survived an exhausting second and then got stronger as the match progressed.
Against Proctor, the difference was not simply winning three sets. It was winning the set that changed the match.
