RAPID CITY — Warner continues its run for a 3-peat on Friday.

The Monarchs put away scrappy Burke in three sets for a Class B state volleyball tournament, winning 25-11, 25-22 and 25-11. 

Up next, Warner (39-0) will play in the Class B state championship on Saturday. The Monarchs have won the past two state championships and have eight total state titles. 

“We have a lot of seniors on our team,” Warner senior hitter Kyra Marcuson said. “So we really want it and we are just going to go out there and play our hardest and give it our all.” 

On Friday, the Monarchs swept a familiar foe in the Cougars (34-4). Burke handed Warner its last defeat against a Class B team, 2-1, on Sept. 10, 2022 in Arlington.

“They are good,” Warner coach Kari Jung said. “We knew they were going to be aggressive and they are very well coached and I just knew they had some good hitters. They had three we were trying to key on. It’s really good for us because they were such a good caliber team that we had to earn our points.”

Ava Nilsson stuffed the stat sheet with five kills, 33 assists, an ace, two solo blocks and two assisted blocks. Kyra Marcuson led the Monarch hitters with 14 kills to go along with two assists, an ace and four digs. Lauren Marcuson delivered nine kills, an assist, an ace, 11 digs and two assisted blocks. Kyleigh Schopp had six kills, an ace and four block assists and Makenna Leidholt had five kills and two digs for Warner. 

The Monarchs controlled the first and led from start-to-finish. 

“We played so much better from the start to the finish than we did last night,” Jung said. “I think the kids were just knowing a little bit more what it feels like again to be on that court and our offense was really on fire tonight. So that helped us.”

In the second set, Burke gave the Monarchs all they could handle. The second set featured 10 ties and six lead changes. 

“What goes through my mind mainly is to even it up with them and tie them and then we can work from there, one point at a time,” Kyra Marcuson said. 

Warner faced a three-point deficit multiple times, but always stayed within striking distance. 

“We had to fight from behind and it was probably a really good experience for them to be in,” Jung said. “So they knew they could do it. They stayed calm and they stayed aggressive and that was important for us to finish.” 

With the set tied at 21-21, Warner closed on a 4-1 surge to stake a crucial 2-0 lead. 

“We had an opportunity to finish a set and we just couldn't finish it,” Burke coach Billie Jo Indahl said. “I think that would have made a little bit of a difference too in how we came out and played that last set.”

Warner’s rally took the wind out of Burke’s sails and the Monarchs cruised in the third set. Warner jumped out to a 14-2 advantage and coasted to the championship. 

“We knew it was going to be a battle with them,” Indahl said. “They just run so quick and it kind of exposed to our blockers a little bit on staying disciplined and their setter (Nilsson) is phenomenal. She is really tough to read and they run such a quick offense, that it was really hard for us to stay disciplined.” 

Emmie Hausmann paced the Burke hitters with six kills and she added six digs. Kailee Frank had five kills, an ace and six digs and Piper Hanson finished with four kills, an assist and two digs. Ava Sargent finished with 10 assists. 

Warner has now won 58 straight matches, the longest active winning streak in the state. Warner has also won 34 straight matches against Class B opponents.