GROTON – The kills came on a variety of angles from multiple hitters and pushed Groton into the Class A SoDak 16 Thursday night.

The Tigers overcame a slow start before putting the finishing touches on a 25-13, 25-21, 25-19 win over Webster during Region 1A volleyball action.

“Our hitters were definitely aggressive tonight,” said Groton’s Rylee Dunker. “They knew where to hit, too, so that helped.”

The Tigers had a strategy going into the match of how to slow down Webster’s hitters and it proved to be instrumental in the victory.

“We knew that they have attacking setters and we know they want to get their middles the ball,” said Groton coach Chelsea Hanson. “Well, it’s tough to get the middle the ball when we put the ball on the setter. And that was a goal of ours.”

As a result, the Tigers were able to be more aggressive, because Webster had a hard time getting into its offense.

“We took them and when they were out of system it was hard for them. When we get free balls, it can be tough to stop us,” Hanson said. “We knew that if could get all of our hitters swinging and firing on all cylinders, we can be tough to stop.”

And when Groton has a multiple faceted offense, containing the Tigers can be a difficult task.

“Their pin sets, their outsides and the right sides are a little higher, but then their middle sets are way quicker, so for our blockers, it’s like, hey, on those high sets you got to wait, on the quick sets in the middle, you got to jump sooner,” said Webster coach Emily Wagner. “And adjusting to that in the middle of a game, in the middle of a rally, is really hard. Their quick and varying offense really helps them.”

Not that Groton nailed all of its hitting attempts, but the Tigers kept on swinging and eventually finished with 43 kills.

Dunker, who led the team with 10 kills, said you need to have a short memory if you hit a ball long.

“You just have to forget about the hit and move on, and come out and be aggressive again,” Dunker said.

Webster started out the evening by taking an 8-4 lead in the opening set. The Bearcats also led 14-7 in the second set, but were unable to secure either set.

“I think our girls played hard, we fought, we hung in there, we played aggressive, but none of our girls have really been in this situation before,” Wagner said, “so I think that’s something that we’re going to use and grow, and really improve on over the years.”

Webster received a strong performance from senior Erin Sannes, who finished with five kills from her right side hitter spot.

“I used to play middle, but I switched to the right side,” Sannes said. “It was definitely a good choice.”

The left-handed hitter found numerous openings in the Groton defense.

“She really switched roles and positions this year. She’s done a great job,” Wagner said. “She has grown so much throughout the year and she ended the season on a good night.”

Sannes was pleased with the way her team performed and kept things in perspective while reflecting on her final match.

“I would have liked to keep going of course,” Sannes said, “but it doesn’t feel wrong that it was my last.”

Taryn Traphagen added eight kills for Groton, while Jaedyn Penning contributed seven.

The Tigers, 20-6, will face Mount Vernon-Plankinton in the SoDak 16 on Tuesday.

Dunker said the team felt some stress being the top-seeded squad in Region 1A, but the Tigers were up to the challenge.

“We definitely feel pressure,” Dunker said, “but if we just stay calm and play our game, we’re fine.”

Serving: Webster 2 aces (Jersey Johnson 1, Allie Case 1); Groton 7 aces (Jaedyn Penning 2, Sydney Locke 1, Liz Fliehs 1).

Hitting: Webster 22 kills (Mallory Steiner 6, Erin Sannes 5, Karli Sannes 4); Groton 105-118 43 kills (Rylee Dunker 20-23 10 kills, Taryn Traphagen 14-16 8 kills, Penning 25-25 7 kills).

Setting: Webster 16 assists (Harley Johnson 11); Groton 38 assists (Fliehs 19, Talli Wright 9).

Digs: Webster 67 (J. Johnson 18, Case 16, Katie Braun 10); Groton 56 (Jerica Locke 13, Laila Roberts 9, Penning 9).

Blocks: Webster 9 (Steiner 1 solo 3 assists, K. Sannes 1 solo 3 assists, E. Sannes 3 assists); Groton 5 (Dunker 2 solo, Traphagen 1 solo 2 assists, Kella Tracy 2 assists).

Records: Webster 13-12; Groton 20-6.