MONROE — Despite getting swept in three sets to Edgewood, the Cheesemakers program is trending up. Monroe lost its Badger South match to the Crusaders 25-14, 25-22, 25-20 Sept. 26.

“I told them in the locker room that we were really proud of their play tonight. This is probably the best we’ve played Edgewood in a long time,” Monroe coach Heidi Witt said. “I think they are just really starting to believe in themselves.”

In the opening set, Edgewood (20-8, 3-1 Badger South) went up big early on, jumping out to a 15-3 lead. The Cheesemakers then wrung off an 8-0 run to bring the score back to within four points, only for the Crusaders to again swing the momentum and end the frame on a 10-3 run.

Monroe never trailed by more than six in the second set, and after getting down 11-5 the Cheesemakers rallied with a 5-0 run to bring the score back to within a point at 11-10 thanks to a pair of aces from Alyse Maurer. Monroe eventually tied the score at 18 after a Lydia Butler kill.

“In practice we’ve been doing a lot of coverage drills and I think that really showed in the game tonight,” Monroe senior setter Lily Frehner said. “I think our energy was really good and our serves were consistent. I think we just played really well tonight. We were consistent with our hits and got some really good passes, and a lot of our blocks were in the right spot.

The only lead of the night for the Cheesemakers came after the opening serve of the third set after Edgewood failed to return a volley. Edgewood took the next four points, but the two squads were trapped in a back-and-forth battle the rest of the way.

“We missed a few too many serves tonight, I think it was a total of six. If you look at what those last two sets were, six can make a difference and turn a game right around,” Witt said. “And then we had a few miscues on serve receive that we normally don’t have.”

The Crusaders have a tall front line, with six players listed above 6-feet. Only Monroe’s Cassi Gersbach (6-foot-even) is listed at or above the 72-inch mark.

“Natalie Ring, she’s a great outside hitter for them. And they were triple-blocking our middles and Chloe Bunker was still making sure to find a way that that ball was touching their block to get a point. She did a nice job,” Witt said. “You have a lot of open spots when three people are blocking you, we just have to find those spots and get the ball there.”

Cassie Gersbach led Monroe with nine kills, nine digs, a block and an assist. Frehner had 20 assists, Maurer and Makayla Harrow each finished with two aces; Maurer also had six digs while Harrow had two blocks, and Chloe Bunker added five kills.

The Cheesemakers (5-12, 0-5) host Oregon (2-14, 1-3) Oct. 3 for their next conference match. A year ago, Monroe took the Panthers to five sets before eventually losing.

“They are so, so close (to winning a conference match), and I think they are starting to taste that, too. They are right there, and it’s going to happen for them. They are working so hard and they are a great group of girls. They love the sport and play really well together. There is no drama, which is huge for a team,” Witt said.

Witt also said there is a buzz beyond just the players and coaches about the team, which opened the regular season without one of its top players due to an injury. A mix of underclassmen and bench depth have filled in when needed, and the team is more competitive and consistent than in recent seasons.

“They know that the fans are believing in them. You can hear the chattering that they are playing so well, and for (our players), it’s a good confidence booster that other people are looking at them the way we know that they know how to play,” Witt said.