Elk River vs. Champlin Park
7 p.m., Tuesday, Sept. 19

Elk River and Champlin Park sit atop the Northwest Suburban Conference standings with perfect 3-0 records. For the Rebels, it’s not a surprise, as they were expected to be one of the top contenders for not just a conference title, but a Class 3A state title.

Elk River (11-4, 3-0), more of a surprise success story this fall, won three of four matches at the Farmington Tournament last weekend, beating Osseo 2-1 in its final match. Senior setter Kincaid Strain ranks fifth in the state with 267 set assists through the season’s first month. Many of those have gone to the trio of junior Sarah Johnson (83 kills) and seniors Ally Hall (68 kills) and Haley Ullrich (66 kills). Hall has also racked up 21 service aces, while Erin Davis leads the team with 199 digs.

Champlin Park has just continued to win, even after graduating Miss Volleyball Sydney Hilley, who now stars at Wisconsin. The No. 3-3A Rebels (9-1, 3-0) have lost just once, to No. 2-3A Lakeville North in the semifinals of the Southwest Minnesota Challenge. Juniors Izzy Ashburn and Emma Schmidt have taken over Hilley’s role, and they rank first and second on the team in both kills (126 for Schmidt, 100 for Ashburn) and set assists (187 for Ashburn, 118 for Schmidt).