HOLMEN — The Holmen High School volleyball team had little trouble stamping its invitation to a third straight WIAA Division 1 sectional championship game on Thursday.
The Vikings (31-0), who are ranked fifth by the Wisconsin Volleyball Coaches Association, moved one step closer to its third appearance in the state tournament since 2021 and second in a row with a 25-17, 25-15, 26-24 sectional semifinal victory over DeForest in front of a packed crowd at the Bernie L. Ferry Fieldhouse.
Second-ranked Holmen will play top-seeded Waunakee (39-8) at 1 p.m. Saturday in DeForest to determine which team represents the sectional in the state tournament at the Resch Center in Green Bay next week.
Seniors Charley Casey and Brenna Schmidt each had nine kills for Holmen in the win over the third-seeded Norskies (30-11), who beat Sun Prairie West to win their regional title. Senior Hadley Teff added eight kills and junior Moira Linse seven.
Casey also led the team with nine kills, while seniors Macy Kline and Makenna McHugh added seven each. McHugh led the team with 14 assists, and senior Sadie Mayer added 13.
Schmidt had three services aces, and Linse added two.
Holmen was seeded sixth in last year’s postseason bracket and knocked off third-seeded Waunakee in four sets during the regional championship round.
Waunakee 3, Onalaska 0
HOLMEN — The top-seeded Warriors advanced with a 25-21, 25-17, 25-20 win over the fourth-seeded Hilltopper in the first semifinal at Bernie L. Ferry Fieldhouse.
Onalaska (21-10) had won its four previous matches before Waunakee took control with a late run in the first set and another in the middle of the second.
The Hilltoppers were led by nine kills from senior Bella Malecek and eight from senior Makena McGarry. Malecek also had three blocks.
Freshman Bella Eckstein had a team-high 17 assists and two aces, while sophomore Kenzie Bauer had 13 digs.
