Sheyenne Defeats Horace in Five Sets to Win Division AA East Title

West Fargo Sheyenne survived a tough test on Saturday in Grand Forks, holding off a challenge from West Fargo Horace to capture the Division AA East Region tournament championship.

The top-seeded Mustangs were forced into five sets for the first time all season before grinding out a 25-22, 20-25, 26-24, 16-25, 15-8 victory inside the Grand Forks Central gym. Both powerhouse programs advance to next weekend’s state tournament in Bismarck.

“We had a lot of pressure on us, but we played our game,” Peyton Saxlund told Yahoo Sports. “I think we really came together as a team.”

Horace entered the deciding fifth set with all the momentum after dominating the fourth. But Saxlund quickly shifted the tide, opening the final frame with back-to-back kills to grab an early 2-0 advantage for the Mustangs.

“It’s always nice in the short games to score first and establish that,” Leah Newton told Yahoo Sports. “It reminded us to relax and that we are a great team and just need to play together.”

The Mustangs gradually widened their margin down the stretch. A tip from 6-foot-1 senior Reilly Bryant pushed the lead to 9-5. Bryant later hammered another kill to make it 13-8 and followed up with a block to stretch the advantage to 14-8. Brynlie Richman sealed the regional title with a dump kill from her setter position.

Saxlund finished the championship match with 15 kills, while Bryant and Olivia Bratton each contributed 11. Bryant added six blocks, breaking Sheyenne’s all-time program record for career blocks in the process. Richman orchestrated the offense with 46 assists alongside 13 digs.

“I went in with the mentality that it’s not over and to fight to the end,” Saxlund said. “That created some momentum on our side.”

Newton said that Saxlund has fully embraced a primary leadership role this season. “She’s a go-to for us,” Newton said. “She wants the ball in the tight situations.”

For Horace, senior Jordan Christofferson earned the region’s senior athlete of the year honors following the match and posted a game-high 16 kills. Junior teammate Kendall Mueller chipped in 13 kills and two aces.

“Horace is one of our biggest competitors,” Saxlund said. “They fight every game, and we knew it’d be a tough one.”

Sheyenne stands at 34-2 overall and finished 16-0 in the Eastern Dakota Conference. “The last few years we’ve had a target on our back, and we’ve learned to deal with it and play for each other,” Newton said.

“I think we’ve had a lot of improvement as a team from the last time we saw them,” Olivia Rohrich told Yahoo Sports. “We switched up our rotation and had a couple girls out of rotation, so there was a lot of potential for them to continue to improve.”

“If we can get them out of system and go on a run, that’s going to be important especially at state,” Stephanie Oliver told Yahoo Sports. “We work on it every day, and I think we’re hitting our peak at the top of the mountain here.”