The Southland volleyball team came away from the Mabel/Canton Invite with a good feeling after they rallied to a fifth place finish Saturday.

The Rebels (4-6 overall) beat Fillmore Central 19-25, 25-15, 15-12 in the fifth place match after having lost to them 25-18, 25-19 in pool play.

“The team that was in better shape won that match,” Southland head coach Angie Smith said. “They had nothing left and we came on strong. It was great to come back and get them.”

In pool play, the Rebels beat Grand Meadow 25-20, 25-20, and lost to Lanesboro 28-26, 26-24; Spring Grove 25-17, 25-14; Mabel/Canton 25-15, 25-10 and Rushford/Peterson 25-23, 25-23.

The experience of playing seven matches in one day was priceless for the Rebels, who are still shaping up their lineup.

“It’s much better than practice. The team had to figure things out on the go and they learned a lot,” Smith said. “We got better and better each game.”

Southland stats (for all seven matches): Katie Barthels, 54 set assists, two ace blocks, 80 digs, 10 ace serves, 21 kills; Emily Howton, 42 assists, 1 block, 42 digs, 5 kills; Jessica Pitzen, 29 digs, 18 kills, 2 ace blocks, 4 ace serves; Jenna Juenger, 22 kills, 8 ace blocks, 9 digs, 2 ace serves; Brandi Schammel, 20 kills, 3 ace blocks, 23 digs, 5 ace serves; Kelli Smith, 35 digs, 8 ace blocks, 1 ace serves, 1 kill; Maria Noterman, 22 digs, 1 kill; Sarah Nelson, 9 digs, 7 kills, 2 ace serves, 4 ace blocks