HAWLEY, Minn. — With East Grand Forks Senior High's volleyball season on the line, the Green Wave rode the hot hand of a freshman on Wednesday night.
Freshman Camille Julien had a team-high 16 kills and five in a decisive fifth set as No. 3 seed East Grand Forks beat No. 2 seed Thief River Falls 21-25, 25-18, 21-25, 25-21, 15-9 in the Minnesota Section 8AA semifinals.
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The Prowlers, who had beaten the Wave twice in the regular season, end the year with a 25-5 record.
East Grand Forks, which improved to 21-10, will play in the Section 8AA championship at 7 p.m. Saturday against No. 1 Barnesville in Moorhead. Barnesville beat East Grand Forks three times in the regular season, although the Wave took the Trojans to five sets in the most recent matchup in late September.
After EGF and TRF battled through a 2-2 split after four sets, the Green Wave stole the early momentum in the fifth set.
After a 2-2 score early in the fifth, Sydney McDonald blasted her 12th kill of the match for a 3-2 lead, followed by Lanee Hams and Julien combing for a block and a 4-2 lead.
Julien's spree started there as she completed kills on three-consecutive attacks. She gave the Wave an 8-3 lead a...