Valley Christian is 7-2 against Montello since September of 2015 and they'll have a chance to extend that dominance on Thursday. The Warriors will challenge the Hilltoppers. The two teams are strolling into their matches after big wins in their previous games.
Valley Christian is on a roll after a high-stakes playoff matchup on Saturday. They put the hurt on Sevastopol with a sharp 3-0 win. The victory was nothing new for the Warriors as they're now sitting on three straight.
Valley Christian was especially dominant in the first set. The final score came out to 25-11, 25-16, 25-21.
Bella Birr
| 10/25/25 vs Sevastopol | 14 |
| 10/23/25 vs Omro | 12 |
| 10/14/25 vs Berlin | 13 |
| 10/11/25 vs Abundant Life | 6 |
| 10/11/25 vs Montello | 11 |
| + 2 more games |
Valley Christian's success was the result of a balanced attack that saw several players step up, but Bella Birr led the charge by getting six digs and two aces. What's more, Birr racked up 14 assists, the most she's had over her last seven contests. Ellie Demler was another key player, getting 15 digs and one assist.
They weren't the only good servers: Valley Christian was lethal from the service line and finished the match with 11 aces. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now served at least five aces in six consecutive matchups.
Meanwhile, Montello made easy work of Roncalli on Saturday and carried off a 3-0 win.
While Montello won a shutout, things came down to the wire in the second set they played. Once all was said and done, the final score wound up at 25-16, 25-22, 25-16.
Valley Christian better focus on containing Rylan Harder and Kyla Calnin as the pair were huge in Montello's win. Harder had 13 digs and two aces, while Calnin had six digs and two aces. Harder is on a roll when it comes to digs, as she's now had ten or more in each of the last six games she's played.
Valley Christian's victory bumped their record up to 28-7. As for Montello, their win bumped their record up to 33-6.
Here's a few offensive stats to keep an eye on ahead of Thursday's match: Valley Christian has really dialed in their serving this season, having averaged 7.2 aces per game. However, it's not like Montello struggles in that department as they've been averaging 8.8 aces. Given these competing strengths, it'll be interesting to see how their clash plays out.
Valley Christian came out on top in a nail-biter against Montello in their previous matchup on October 11th, sneaking past 2-1. Will the Warriors repeat their success, or do the Hilltoppers have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
