WATERTOWN — Just about any way you look at it, the 2025 season was certainly another very successful one for Watertown High School's volleyball team.
Despite having to find replacements for a number of key regulars, the Arrows pieced together another 20-plus win season that included a third-straight appearance in the state Class AA tournament.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementWhile Watertown's 22-11 record didn't match the marks of the 2023 (27-7) and 2024 (26-8) squads, the 2025 Arrows did place higher in the state tournament. Watertown placed fourth after taking fifth in 2023 and sixth in 2024.
"It was definitely a great season for not having many returning starting players," Watertown coach Rosemary Bellum said. "We had only three players who saw the court regularly back from last season and we had five or six other new players come in and do an outstanding job."
Watertown players, from left, Anna Hirtz, Ellie Thury, Sianna Stanton, Kali Ellis, Bryn Koistinen, Jaelyn Kettwig and Lauren Paulson cheer on their teammates during a first-round Class AA match against Sioux Falls Lincoln in the South Dakota State High School Volleyball Tournament on Thursday, Nov. 20, 2025, at The Monument in Rapid City. Watertown won 3-2.Leading the team
Returning regulars Anna Hirtz, Siri Bach and Reese Munger certainly provided leadership for an Arrow team that also received key contributions all season from Ellie Thury, Kynsee Russell, Carighan Klatt, Jordan Remmers and Andi Olson. Hensley Hogue and Torrence Tipton also stepped into bigger roles later in the season.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementHirtz, a 5-foot-7 senior outside hitter and coach Bellum's daughter, led the team with 250 kills. Bach, a 5-11 senior right-side hitter, added 190 kills and 78 blocks and Munger, a 5-11 junior middle hitter, added 152 kills, 85 blocks and 35 aces.
Russell, a 5-6 senior, took over setting duties and produced 42 aces, 885 assists and 310 digs. Thury (5-8 senior outside hitter) added 119 kills, 39 aces and 22 digs; Klatt (5-10 junior middle-outside hitter) 219 kills and 71 blocks; Jordan Remmers (5-6 junior defensive specialist) 37 aces and 214 digs and Olson (5-6 junior libero) 23 aces and 486 digs.
Tipton (5-11 sophomore outside hitter) contributed 89 kills and Hogue (5-5 junior defensive specialist) 115 digs. (A link to the team's complete season statistics can be found online at www.thepublicopinion.com).
Olson earned Class AA all-state second team honors from the South Dakota Volleyball Coaches Association and All-Eastern South Dakota Conference honors along with Hirtz and Klatt.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisement"I felt this year was going to be more of a rebuilding year but all of those girls stepped up and it wasn't," Bellum said. "They wanted to make it back to the state tournament."
Watertown coaches, from left, Erica Paulson, Rosemary Bellum, Kelly Kettwig, Katie Tobin and Kelly McCarty celebrate after a first-round Class AA match against Sioux Falls Lincoln in the South Dakota State High School Volleyball Tournament on Thursday, Nov. 20, 2025, at The Monument in Rapid City. Watertown won 3-2.Losses to top foes, wins over others
Watertown was rated in the South Dakota Prep Media Volleyball Poll (top 5) for most of the season and suffered all of its losses to talented foes.
The Arrows were 1-8 against the five teams rated in the final S.D. Prep Media Poll (No. 1 Harrisburg 0-2, No. 2 O'Gorman 0-1, No. 3 Brandon Valley 0-3, No. 4 Sioux Falls Lincoln 1-1 and No. 5 Mitchell 0-1).
Watertown's other losses came to South Dakota state Class A champion Dakota Valley and perennial powers from Minnesota (Marshall) and Iowa (Western Christian). Marshall won its 10th Minnesota state Class AAA championship and fourth in five years. Western Christian advanced to the Class 3A semifinals in Iowa, reaching the semis for the 25th-straight year.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementThe Arrows did avenge a 3-0 loss to Lincoln in the first round of state before falling to four-time state champion Harrisburg in the semifinal and Brandon Valley in the third-place match.
"Harrisburg, O'Gorman and Brandon Valley were the top three teams in AA, like a top tier. We're right below that, right at the edge," Bellum said. "We're just giving up 2-3 inches per player in the front row, missing some speed and some experience. We were competitive in matches with those teams, but they'd put on the afterburners and make it a five-point spread."
2025 STATE AA VOLLEYBALL TOURNEY: Watertown closes out 22-11 volleyball season with fourth-place finish
Program sitting in good shape
The Arrows will lose Hirtz, Russell, Thury and Bach to graduation but should have more experience back next fall than they did this season.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementIn nine years under Bellum, Watertown has compiled a 193-81 record with seven state-tourney appearances. The state-tourney trips include the program's second-ever state championship in 2019.
The Arrows will keep working to climb the ladder even higher in South Dakota Class AA volleyball.
"We have girls who work hard," Bellum said. "The players in our program take pride in fundamentals, being in the right spot and doing what coaches ask them to do. The girls did that again this fall and they were rewarded with a successful season."
Follow Watertown Public Opinion sports reporter Roger Merriam on X (formerly known as Twitter) @PO_Sports or email: [email protected]
This article originally appeared on Watertown Public Opinion: 2025 season recap for Watertown High School's volleyball team
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