By John Rittenhouse
Luverne ran its volleyball record to 2-0 after turning in a dominating home performance against Sioux Valley-Round Lake-Brewster Thursday.
The Cardinals limited the Raiders to two points in each of the matches' three games while outscoring their opponents 45-6 during a convincing 3-0 victory.
Luverne coach Mary Jo Graphenteen thought her team made some progress compared with the first match of the season, which always is a positive sign.
"We took a step ahead. They didn't pass the ball very well, and that allowed us to get going. We did some things we needed to do, like keeping the ball in play and not being afraid to hit it hard, and we didn't have any unforced errors. When you play against a team like that, you want to look your best. I think we did that," she said.
Luverne got off to a good start in the opening game by scoring the first eight points.
Missy Boomgaarden served a five-point run featuring an ace, two kills by Tracey Scheidt and another kill by Susan Remme to start the match. Brooke Lundgren served a point and another ace, and Boomgaarden capped the 8-0 rally with a kill.
The score was 10-2 when Boomgaarden served two points and an ace, Remme provided a kill and Emmy Bush served another point to cap a 15-2 win.
The Raiders led 2-1 in Game 2 before the Cards scored 14 consecutive points to take the game.
Lisa Mulder served a six-point run featuring an ace, a kill by Boomgaarden and a block by Remme. Boomgaarden served a four-point run that consisted of two aces, a kill and an ace tip by Scheidt. Another block by Remme and a service point by Lundgren made it 13-2 before Abbey Franken closed out a 15-2 win with a pair of ace serves.
The Cards trailed 1-0 in the third game before stringing together 13 straight points.
Scheidt served four straight aces during a six-point run that included a kill by Franken. Lundgren served the next seven points with Franken and Emily Kuhlman adding one kill each.
After SV-RL-B snapped Luverne's run with a point to make it 13-2, Franken served a pair of aces to put the match away.
Boomgaarden was 12 of 13 with 12 points and four aces at the service line. Lundgren, who had 18 set assists, was 12 of 12 with 11 points. Mulder was 10 of 11 with nine points.
Remme and Scheidt led the Cards at the net with seven and five kills respectively.