After taking down Faribault Tuesday night, the Albert Lea volleyball team was back on the court against Mankato East Thursday night.

The Tigers forced a fifth set, but couldn’t squeeze past the Cougars, losing 15-12 in the game’s deciding set.

Despite the loss, Tigers coach Cathy Baumann was still pelased with what she saw on the court.

“Our passing on serve-receive has shown some great improvements,” Baumann said. “But defensively, we were not covering our court well and (Mankato East) took advantage of that.”

Junior Alex Eckstrom really seems to be coming into her own as the season has progressed. She finished the match with a season-high 12 kills, and her aggressiveness is something that Baumann has noticed. She (Eckstrom) really had a standout night,” Baumann said. “She took control and made some commanding plays offensively.”

Camryn Keyeski led the Tigers with 14 kills and 18 digs, and Sarah DeHaan added eight kills.

Paige Landsman had 23 assists and Mikaela Pannkuk added 19 assists.

Albert Lea will be in a tournament today and Saturday at St. Michael-Albertville High School.