Hopkins left the Apple Valley Eagle Invitational with an unlikely 13-25, 25-16, 15-12 victory over previously unbeaten and top-ranked Eden Prairie on Saturday thanks to an unlikely contributor: sophomore outside hitter Greta Werner.

Opposing teams typicall focus on Royals’ sophomore outside hitter Jasmyn Martin, and the Eagles were no exception. Werner took advantage of the opportunity, leading the Royals with timely hitting and finishing with 12 kills to push Hopkins past its toughest rival in the Lake Conference.

"Greta has been such a surprise for us," Royals’ head coach Vicki Swenson said. "Going into preseason, I had no idea who was going to fill that other outside role."

Werner put in extra work over the summer with her older sister, Ingrid, and the additional effort helped Greta develop into the perfect hitting compliment to Martin's lethal swing this season.

"(Greta's) not going to terminate like Jas does, but she can still terminate in a different way," Swenson said. "Being smart, hitting shots, hitting high hands off the block, keeping the ball in play when we're out of system ... she's just great at hitting shots."

Ingrid is Hopkins’ libero, and her presence on the court is improving Greta’s game as the older sister points out holes in the defense.

"(Ingrid) tells me what shots are open when I'm hitting," Greta said. "So I usually (hit) where she says and if not, I just hit some cut shots and line shots that usually score."

The girls displayed their sisterly communication in the championship match against Eden Prairie, No. 1 in the Minnesota Volleyball Coaches Association's Class 3A ranking, as Greta picked apart the Eagles' defense like a seasoned veteran to wrap up a Hopkins’ victory.

The comeback victory boosted the confidence of the Royals, who have had an up-and-down season.

Hopkins, No. 8, lost to Eden Prairie last week and the victory Saturday gives Swenson a good feeling about her team’s prospects for success the rest of the season. She also knows Hopkins won’t be intimidated should the Royals and the Eagles meet in the section finals with her team anchored by two youn, contrasting outside hitters in Martin and Werner.

"There are many ways to score a point in volleyball," Swenson said."Some kids are going to get the big, monster kills and that's fun, but some kids are just going to play smart volleyball and hit shots and that's what Jasmyn and Greta do for us."

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