(Falls City, N.E.)- With a couple of undefeated records at stake, it was ultimately the Griffins of Diller-Odell defeating Falls City Sacred Heart in five sets in a thrilling five-set match Tuesday night.

The two sides came into the matchup each with a 6-0 record, combining for only three set losses in 30 total sets. Both teams also came in off of weekend tournament wins to only solidify their rock-solid starts to the 2020 campaign.

Diller-Odell came out of the gates strong, taking set number one 25-22. The defending class D1 state champions rode the play of their outside hitters to Karli Heidemann and Madelyn Meyerle to take the tightly contested set two.

However, Sacred Heart came roaring back in set two. Junior Erison Vonderschmidt dominated the attack for the Irish in both the front and back rows as Sacred Heart edged out a 25-21 second set win.

The two continued to trade sets as Diller-Odell took the third and Falls City Sacred Heart took the fourth to force a decisive fifth set. In that fourth set, the Irish trailed late 20-17, in jeopardy of dropping the match. However, thanks to some solid serving from their lone senior Danielle Bippes, the Irish rattled off six unanswered points and forced a fifth set with a 25-22 win.

The fifth set replicated what the entirety of the match was; back-and-forth and competitive. Sacred Heart controlled most of the way, but a late charge by the Griffins gave Diller-Odell a late 14-11 lead and a shot to close out the Irish. The Irish would not go quietly though as they scored three unanswered points with their backs against the wall to make the final set 14-14. In the end, however, Diller-Odell overcame the late surge from Sacred Heart and pulled out the final two points, with Karli Heidemann notching a front-row kill to seal the victory.

Diller-Odell improves now to 7-0, while Falls City Sacred Heart loses for the first time in 2020, falling to 6-1. The Irish next face Sidney on Thursday on the road, while the Griffins travel to Lewiston Thursday for their next match.

Story Courtesy of Ben Helwig