Holton and Silver Lake Advance to Saturday Semifinals of 3A State Volleyball

Both the Holton and Silver Lake volleyball teams advanced to Saturday's semifinals of the Class 3A State Tournament in Hutchinson following an eventful day of pool play on Friday.

Both teams finished 2-1 in pool play, while Cheney and Beloit each finished 1-2.

Holton opened the day with a straight-set victory over No. 1-ranked Beloit before following it up with a hard-fought three-set win over No. 4-ranked Cheney.

Silver Lake began its day with a three-set loss to Cheney but bounced back with a straight-set victory over Beloit.

That set up a highly anticipated matchup between the Wildcats and Eagles in their final pool-play match. Holton entered at 2-0, while Silver Lake was 1-1.

The Wildcats took the opening set 25-17, but Silver Lake responded by claiming the second set 25-19 to force a winner-take-all third set.

The Eagles jumped out to an early 7-3 advantage in the deciding set and held on to complete the comeback, defeating Holton 17-25, 25-19, 25-21.

The result left both Silver Lake and Holton with matching 2-1 records in pool play. Both teams then had to wait for the outcome of the day's final match between Cheney and Beloit to determine their semifinal fate.

Tiebreaker scenarios were in place, but Beloit's three-set victory over Cheney ultimately secured semifinal spots for both the Wildcats and Eagles.

Holton will face Hesston in Saturday's semifinal, while Silver Lake will take on Frontenac. Both matches are scheduled to begin at 1 p.m. The two winners will meet immediately afterward in the state championship match, while the two semifinal losers will battle for third place.

Coverage of Holton's matches will be available on 103.9 KNZA and the Holton Channel. Silver Lake fans can follow the Eagles' matches on the Silver Lake Channel.

And, of course, there's an intriguing possibility looming. Last year's state championship match featured Silver Lake and Holton, and Saturday could set the stage for a ninth meeting between the two rivals over the last two seasons.

We'll see if these two familiar foes can find their way back to one another in the championship match!