SPEARFISH – Aberdeen Central wasn’t letting this one get away.

After falling in four sets to Spearfish early in the season – a match that spanned parts of two days due to a threat at the school – the Golden Eagles returned the favor on Thursday. 

Central put together a statement win over the Spartans, sweeping Spearfish 25-9, 27-25, 25-22 in a SoDak 16 volleyball contest and earning a return ticket to the Class AA state tournament next weekend.

Central coach Jackie Bindenagel noted that the redemption factor played a leading role in the Golden Eagles’ preparations for the match.

“We talked about it a lot this past week, and they completely embraced it. It was fun to see that tonight.”

Central won in all kinds of ways, beginning with a dominant victory in set one, holding the Spartans to single digits on their home court. The Golden Eagles then eked out the win in set two, before rallying in the third.

“We were down 17-22 in the third and scored eight points in a row,” Bindenagel said.

Lauryn Burckhard finished with 18 kills to lead the way for the Golden Eagles. Kenadi Withers added nine and Kamdyn Borge had seven. Withers also notched 17 digs and a service ace, while Taylin Kleffman had 19 digs and an ace for Central.

“We made some plays and they made some errors,” Bindenagel said. “That combination got us the win. … I’m really happy for the kids.”

The win puts the Golden Eagles back in the state tournament for the second straight season. Central will draw top-seeded Harrisburg in the opening round.

“We’ll just get in there and see what we can do,” Bindenagel said. “Last year we went and got eighth, and it was huge that we got there. Some of these kids have experience now, so we’ll see what happens.”

Serving: Aberdeen Central 74-77 4 aces (Kenadi Withers 18-18 1 ace, Alivia Miller 15-15 1 ace, Taylin Kleffman 13-13 1 ace, Abigail DeVries 6-8 1 ace).

Hitting: Aberdeen Central 118-133 39 kills (Lauryn Burckhard 43-50 18 kills, Withers 24-26 9 kills, Kamdyn Borge 22-24 7 kills).

Setting: Aberdeen Central 113-113 37 assists (Miller 105-105 37 assists).

Digs: Aberdeen Central 78 (Kleffman 19, Withers 17, Kennedy Osborne 12).

Blocks: Aberdeen Central 2 solo 4 assists (Amelia Rife 1 solo 2 assists).

Records: Aberdeen Central 13-8; Spearfish 23-10.