-Messenger photo by Britt Kudla Eden Horn of St. Edmond tips the ball over the net against AGWSR on Wednesday

The duo of senior Ava Underberg and freshman Eden Horn dominated at the net, lifting St. Edmond to a sweep of AGWSR here Wednesday night in Class 1A postseason volleyball action.

Underberg recorded 12 kills and two blocks while Horn tallied 13 kills, five blocks and three aces as the Gaels (10-20 overall) advanced to a Region 8 semifinal.

Scores were 25-22, 25-18 and 25-15.

St. Edmond will now head to Conrad on Monday to take on sixth-ranked and defending state runner-up BCLUW (33-8), a straight-set winner over Lynnville-Sully.

“Our outside hitters did incredible,” SEHS head coach Lindsay Heffernan said. “Ava just hammered the ball, which was so fun to see. I think she probably had one of her best games of the year, and Eden just continues to grow as a player.

“I felt like we saw a lot of the things we’ve been working on in practice, so that is a great sign.”

A 5-0 run in the first set the tone for the Gaels, as they put some distance between themselves and the Cougars (7-30). AGWSR would hang around, tying it at 20-all before St. Edmond put it away with a closing 6-2 rally.

Horn and senior Faith Shirbroun each had four kills in the set as Abby Huss recorded 12 of her 34 assists. Chloe Palmer had three aces and Underberg three kills.

“We’ve got to start faster,” Heffernan said. “I told the girls that in the huddle (after the match) because we need to get going earlier in sets. It felt like we were in control for the most part, but it was still a little too close for me.”

The Cougars came out hot in the second set, taking a 5-3 lead before the Gaels got on track, reeling off nine of the next 12 points. Horn had a block and Ava Andrew an ace during a four-point run that made it 16-12.

St. Edmond again closed strong, winning 10 of the final 14 points, highlighted by a Huss ace and another Underberg kill, as she had seven in the set.

Horn had a block followed by an ace in the third as part of a 6-1 rally, with Huss recording back-to-back aces that forced an AGWSR timeout with the Gaels leading 13-8.

St. Edmond would put the match away for its second straight postseason sweep with a 7-0 run.

Shirbroun finished with seven kills, Palmer had three kills and three aces, Anna Lursen recorded a block and Huss had three aces.

For AGWSR, Brylea Metzgar had 17 kills and Hadley Bright added eight.

BCLUW finished second in the Iowa Star South behind North Tama. They have won at least 30 matches each of the past three seasons.

“It’s a great opportunity ahead of us on Monday night,” Heffernan said. “We’re gonna get to work, do some research and be prepared to go after them.”