DECATUR - The dream volleyball season at Lutheran School Association took another step toward fairy tale on Thursday when the Class A Lions knocked off Class 3A MacArthur, 23-25, 25-11, 25-11 to improve to 26-2 on the year.

It's the first time that LSA has bested the Generals, and it sure felt sweet.

"This is so huge. Looking across the net at some of the girls I know from volleyball camps and from club volleyball, this might be the most exciting game I've played in," said LSA's Morganne Criswell. "And then to beat them for the first time, it was amazing."

It started rough. With the Lions' hard-hitting freshman riding the bench, waiting for her front-row rotation to cycle through, LSA went from up four points to down six in matter of minutes in Game 1. They immediately began to rally when Criswell reentered and hammered three kills.

"Morganne is such a big part of our success. We have kids that can play all over the court, but Morganne, I think, gives us a confidence that is greater than we would have normally," LSA coach Elizabeth Morr said. "And with Hillary (King), Alex (Reynolds), Emilee (Rigg), Rachel (McBride) and all of the girls, it's a great boost."

The Lions tied the opening game at 23 before falling, but you could see excitement return to their demeanors.

"We were so energetic before the match. We were killing it in warm-ups," Morr said. "Then we had a little letdown there. Maybe we were overexcited."

They settled in and took over Game 2 early, extending an early six-point led almost rhythmically behind a block, an ace and three kills from Rigg and four kills from Criswell, who finished with 10 spikes. Game 3 was back and forth until a 10-1 run put the Lions up seven. An 8-1 sizzle put the game to bed.

"We picked each other up after that first game and made sure everyone knew that it wasn't the end of the world," Reynolds said. "We've been doing it all year. That's what has kept us going. We practice hard and make sure everyone keeps a positive attitude."

It was point runs that did in MacArthur (13-20), which got 10 kills each from Stevene McGee and Hayley Baker. The letdowns have become a disturbing trend, according to the Generals coach.

"But we allowed LSA six points or more in a row four times tonight. That's become a bad habit for us, and you can't do it against good teams," Generals coach Scott Brown said. "We kind of go in the tank after that, and it's one mistake after another.

"The first game is as fine a game as we've played this year. We just have not learned how to overcome those lapses, but we'll work hard and try and get something going in the postseason."

Troy Hayes can be reached at thayes@herald-review.com or 421-6970.