Both Minooka and Bolingbrook entered Thursday’s Southwest Prairie Conference girls volleyball match with identical 2-0 conference records. Their overall records were similar as well – the Indians owning a 14-6 mark; the Raiders 11-4.

It came as no surprise, then, that the match went to three sets. Minooka used a balanced attack and strong defense at the net to come away with a 25-22, 19-25, 25-21 win.

Bolingbrook got out of the gate quickly, taking a 10-5 lead in the first set only to see Minooka chip away and pull to within 15-12 on a kill by Kendall Kozak, who finished with eight kills and 11 assists. She then stepped to the service line and delivered six straight points, getting three kills by Courtney Walter in the stretch, to move ahead 18-15.

Bolingbrook got a kill from Noelle Aprati - one of a match-high 16 - to tie the score at 21 before Minooka got two kills from Kozak down the stretch to clinch the set.

The Raiders again got out early in the second set, but this time they kept their foot on the gas.

After getting a 7-3 lead on a kill by sophomore Angelia Robinson, Bolingbrook extended its lead to 15-9 on an ace by Aprati. The lead reached 20-10 on a block by Robinson, but Minooka rallied again, scoring six straight points to pull to within 20-16. The score was 23-19 before Aprati got a kill, and Catherine Daniels and Faith Fisher combined for a block to end the set and send it to a third.

The script flipped in the third set.

Minooka got out to an 8-2 lead, capped by an ace by Lily Mayer, who finished with six kills and three blocks. Later, a kill by Kozak put the Indians ahead 17-7, and they eventually moved out to a 20-10 lead.

It was Bolingbrook’s turn to rally, and the Raiders did just that. A kill by Aprati, a block by Daniels and a kill by Fisher pulled them to within 21-16. They faced match point at 24-19, but got back-to-back kills from Aprati to make it 24-21 before Mayer ended the match with a kill for Minooka.

“In the second set when we got down by a lot, Bolingbrook did a real good job of adjusting to what we were doing,” Kozak said. “We needed to adjust and move the ball around, and that’s what we were able to do in the third set.

“We got a big lead in the third set, and sometimes when we get a big lead, we relax a little bit. We like to be in tight matches, but we need to be able to not relax when we have a big lead. The good thing was that we worked very well together tonight. We have that mentality on the court that we want to pick up our teammates if they make a mistake.

“It was a good all-around match for us. The passers did a good job of getting the ball to the setters, and the hitters did a good job.”

Charlotte Matejka had six kills for Minooka, while Walter had three. Maddie Dostal led the club with 13 digs.

Robinson had nine kills for Bolingbrook, while Ayanna Davis had six.

“Everyone played well tonight,” Minooka coach Carrie Prosek said. “A good thing about this team is that, if someone is struggling, we have a deep bench, and those girls can come in and do the job. Courtney Walter had been struggling the last couple of matches, but when she came in tonight, she got a couple of kills right away.

“We are playing with a lot of confidence. We have really good communication, and everyone knows their roles and appreciates each other. We knew it would be a tough match with Bolingbrook. It always is with them. [Bolingbrook coach] Molly [DeSerf] is a great coach and scouted us well. We had to adjust to what they were doing, and we were able to do that.”