It was supposed to be the showdown of the top two volleyball teams in the Gopher Conference, but in the end it was just another case of Bethlehem Academy displaying its dominance.

Entering the season New Richland-Hartland-Ellendale-Geneva head coach Jackie Schultz expected her team to challenge the Cardinals (17-3), the No. 1-ranked team in Class A, but when the Panthers (17-3) got their shot Thursday night in New Richland, it was Bethlehem Academy earning a 3-0 victory like it has so many times before.

“We hung with them in game one,” Schultz said. “I think we may have surprised them a bit … so Bethlehem Academy turned it up a notch. They just keep attacking and attacking and it wore us down.”

After a 25-17 first set victory, the Cardinals turned it up a couple of notches for a 25-9 victory and closed the match out with a 25-17 win.

Anna Schlaak led the way for the Panthers. She had a team-high 12 kills on the night and recorded eight digs.

Kacie Phillips had a team-high 14 set assists for the Panthers.

While NRHEG suffered a defeat, the game gave them confidence going forward.

“We put up some nice numbers against them and we proved we can compete at that level … we just need to become a little more consistent and believe.” Schultz said.