On Saturday in Mitchell, South Ripley Volleyball made its first appearance in a 2A regional since 2016. As heard on WRBI, the Raiders fell to 7th ranked Linton-Stockton 3-1 in the semifinal round.
Coaches Lisa Gilpen and Kyle Jolly saw their Raiders struggle with unforced errors in the first set losing 25-17. But the Versailles crew settled in after that and gave the favored Miners a great match.
In set two, which featured nine ties and five lead changes, the Miners went on a 7-0 run to go up 20-14 and held on to win 25-22.
In game three, the Green and White rallied from a 6-point deficit to even the score at 16. From there, South Ripley closed on a 9-1 run to win 25-17.
And it looked like that momentum was going to force a game five as, in the fourth set, the Raiders held a 17-10 advantage. But Linton rallied to overtake South Ripley and won 25-23 to advance to the regional finals.
The Miners later lost to 5th ranked North Posey in straight sets.
For the Raiders, they finish the 2021 season with a record of 22-11, ORVC champions and a now five-time sectional champion.