Rochester Mayo has had a voice in Class 3A Section 1 tournament play over the past decade, but the Spartans have had little effect playing in a group with Lakeville North, Lakeville South and Northfield.
This is the Spartans' chance to make a little more meaningful noise.
Rochester Mayo (12-5, 6-0) and No. 9-4A Northfield (13-4, 6-0) enter Tuesday's game tied atop the conference standings. A victory would allow Mayo to unseat the defending champs and head into the Class 4A Section 1 tournament with a little swagger.
Both teams are junior-dominated. Setter Hannah Hanson and hitter Madison Meyer, along with sophomore setter Jadyn Lester, lead Mayo. The junior trio of Sydney Jaynes, Annelise Larson and Teagan Timperley leads Northfield.
But the Raiders have the edge in strength of schedule. All of Northfield's losses this season have been against ranked opponents, and the Raiders take a seven-game win streak into Tuesday's game.
Northfield has a roster full of multi-talented players as well. Jaynes leads the team in kills (182) and digs (188) and has 27 service aces. Timperley has 106 kills and 133 digs to go along with here 242 assists.
Rochester Mayo enters the game on a five-game winning streak.