For nearly three sets, there wasn’t much to separate Milbank Area and Webster at Roncalli Gym Tuesday night. Then the Bulldogs made a couple of key plays to grab a lead, the momentum and eventually an opening round win over Webster in Region 1A volleyball action.

Milbank Area secured a hard-fought 25-16, 18-25, 25-22, 25-14 victory. While the Bearcats put up plenty of resistance, the Bulldogs rose to the challenge when it mattered most.

“Fortunately it went our way,” said Milbank Area coach Nancy Hoeke, who noted that her players got off to a shaky start. “They did get pushed. I think the nerves got to them. I think they played pretty tight for a while.”

A key moment occurred late in the third set. With the match tied at a set apiece and the score deadlocked at 19-19, Milbank Area’s Shaylee Schuchard blocked Webster standout hitter Gracie Cadell for a pivotal point. That block propelled the Bulldogs to a third-set win and Milbank Area controlled the match the rest of the way.

“That was a really good play,” Schuchard said. “I was glad I got up there and got that point, because it could’ve went either way.”

That block not only gave Milbank Area a shot of adrenaline to finish off the third set, but also impacted the remainder of the match, according to Webster coach Vanessa Bloom, who called the play a “momentum shifter” at that juncture of the match.

“They did well with that block,” Bloom said, “and that was a little bit of change then for what we did on our side even going into that fourth set as well.”

From there, the Bulldogs found a rhythm and were well on their way to a win.

Milbank Area senior Skyler Skoog, who finished with 13 kills and three ace serves, said her team made adjustments to turn the match around.

“I think we changed what we were doing. We found certain spots to hit,” Skoog said. “Our coach really pushed us. We got a lot of confidence and I think our energy really helped us, too. We got really excited when we were doing really good things.”

The entire squad got excited when Skoog made a remarkable play in the fourth set, chasing down a ball while going out of bounds to extend a play that the Bulldogs eventually won.

“I really wanted that one,” Skoog said. “That was a lot of determination there.”

Hoeke was surprised how that play transpired.

“That was unbelievable. She went a long ways to go get that ball,” Hoeke said. “I thought if she gets a touch on it, that’s one thing, but she made a play that we could get back over the net.”

That play was an example of how the Bulldogs found another gear as the match wore on.

“They’re level kind of switched,” Bloom said, “and we didn’t switch our energy level to follow with that.”

Cadwell was definitely a force for the Bearcats the entire way, though. The senior did not get cheated on her swings at the net.

“She doesn’t let up. When you kind of scout her, she does not hit a soft ball,” Hoeke said. “She likes to hit it hard every time.”

Rachel Schulte topped the Bulldogs with 18 kills, Addiysn Krause contributed 28 set assists, and Ella Sandvig had 27 digs in a solid team effort.

“We all do different things,” Schuchard said, “and we’re good at what we do.”

Hoeke noted the play of Isabella Anderson, who found herself in the role of a setter towards the end of the match.

“She just put a ball up there that we could attack,” Hoeke said “She’s the one that likes to be scoring the points and that wasn’t her role tonight, but she did what she needed to do, too.”

Milbank Area, 20-11, takes on Aberdeen Roncalli around 7:45 p.m. Thursday in the semifinals in Groton. The Cavaliers won a previous match in four sets.

“We won a set against them the first time,” Skoog said. “They are a very good team, but we’re going to try our hardest, bring confidence.”

Serving: Milbank Area 5 aces (Skyler Skoog 3, Rachel Schulte 1, Siera Wenzl 1).

Hitting: Milbank Area 43 kills (Schulte 18, Skoog 13, Claire Snaza 5).

Setting: Milbank Area 41 assists (Addisyn Krause 20, Schulte 14, Isabella Anderson 5).

Digs: Milbank Area (Ella Sandvig 27, Skoog 22, Krause 20, Schulte 18).

Blocks: Milbank Area 12 assists (Shaylee Schuchard 4, Skoog 2, Snaza 2, Hailey Zinter 2).

Records: Webster 10-17; Milbank Area 20-11.

Webster stats not available