Braham Falls on the Road in Conference Battle

Braham traveled to Pine City on Thursday night.

Both teams were looking for their first conference win of the year. Pine City hadn't won a game yet, and Braham had won 2.

These two rivals couldn't wait to get the game started, and as soon as it did, there were fireworks. Pine City got an early lead in set one and looked prime to run away with it. But the Bombers held strong and not only tied the game but took the lead. They would lead for a majority of the set, but Pine City was never far behind. As the set wore on, the Dragons were able to swing momentum in their favor. Eventually, they were able to come from behind to retake the lead late. Just as it looked like they were going to win, Braham had one more scoring run in them to close the gap. But Pine City finished it off 25-22. The 2nd set was much of the same, both teams kept it close and never lead by more than 2 or 3 points. But once again the Dragons pulled away late and won set two by the same score as the first. As if the first two sets weren't entertaining enough, the third set was just as fun but more! This time it was Braham who jumped into the lead first. But the Dragons were quick to score and tie the game. This back and forth would continue all set, though there were stretches of momentum exchanging hands. Braham had managed to take a lead late into the set for the first time all game and it looked like they would walk away with the set win. But a key timeout by Pine helped them once again come back and and take the lead late. Just as soon as Pine was going to end the set, Braham returned with some fire and sent the set into extra points. And the Bombers used that fire to get the final point and win the 3rd 26-24.

Could it get more entertaining, well the 4th set proved it could. Again Braham got off to a fast start but this time it looked different, in a good way. They seemed to be more relaxed and things were flowing smoothly. On the other side, Pine City seemed to maybe get into their own heads alittle bit, there were some unforced errors and players out of position. The Bombers were ready to run away with the set and send it to a 5th. But like the great Lee Corso would say " Not so fast my friend!", the Dragons were able to correct their mistakes on the fly and go on a scoring run to erase their deficit and tie the game. And now both teams were in rhythm and it turned into a game of who would make the first mistake. Late in the set Pine City was able to pull away, not by alot but enough to make it a hill to climb for the Bombers. But Braham did just that many in the gym thought we were headed for a 5th. But a rare miss hit by Braham would end the set 25-23, and Pine City won 3-1.

The Dragons win their first game of the year and its a conference win, they'll in Isle on Tuesday.

The Bombers lost, but theirs so much for this team to build on! They'll host Barnum Monday night.

Pine Insurance Player of the Game:

Chloe Jerikovsky 5 Kills, 2 Blocks, Ace(Unofficial stats)