Saxony Lutheran had little time to dwell on the past. In fact, they only had 24 hours to do so.

Following a 3-1 loss at Dexter on Monday night, the Crusaders got back to their winning ways behind a thrilling 3-1 victory over rival and previously unbeaten St. Vincent on Tuesday night at Saxony Lutheran High School.

“We suffered a tough loss last night against Dexter,” head coach Stephanie Brown said. “We just didn't really ever bring it together, but I was so proud of the way they came back tonight and won. The fire, the energy, the enthusiasm, everybody. I’m so proud of these girls.”

However, the difference between the loss at Dexter and the triumph over St. Vincent (4-1-2) did not have to do with the energy or skillset of the team. Brown said the home-court advantage played a huge factor.

“It's hard to put my finger on it,” said Brown when asked about the contrast in performances from Monday to Tuesday. “We did have the energy last night, but I don't know. I will say being at home really helps us. They are the best fans, and I think that really fires our girls up. And it was pretty quiet and silent in the gym last night, so then having those guys is awesome. I think that has a lot to do with it.”

Charged by an electric home crowd led by the rowdy student section, Monday was a different story for the girls in navy and white. It was also a complete team effort.

Saxony (2-2) led in the opening set 17-7 before St. Vincent began to chip away at the deficit behind superb volleying and poise.

Leading 24-20, the Crusaders leaned on their senior aces in setter Isabel Brown — a first-team All-District 1 selection in 2023 — and Camille Richey to claim the set and lead 1-0.

The Lady Indians sprinted out to a 8-2 advantage in the second set, forcing Brown to call a timeout to have her squad mentally reset.

That they did.

Saxony then mounted a 6-0 run to knot things up at 8-8. From that point on, it was a total back-and-forth affair with neither team getting out to more than a three-point lead in the set. The Crusaders persevered and capped off the set with a 25-23 win.

Behind six Kate Rubel kills, St. Vincent came out firing on all cylinders in the third set and led it wire-to-wire to win 25-23 and send the match to a fourth set.

Backed by a huge Adalina Deckerd showing, the Crusaders were able to recalibrate in the final set and won with a little more breathing room, 25-18, to earn their second victory of the season.

Saxony has now won the previous four matches against St. Vincent.

“I’m really happy that they did reset,” Brown said. “I think they know that we can do this, and they understand that. They just have to believe in themselves to make it happen.”

The young Crusader roster, who lost eight seniors this offseason, rose the occasion and continued to flash their potential on the court Tuesday. Brown said that her team’s development is continuing to blossom each week.

“We're still growing,” she said. “For one, keeping our energy up and finishing. That was our trouble last night. We had really close sets and we just couldn't finish. But today we did and I just think we're going to continue to grow and continue to get better. Chemistry is going to continue to grow and I'm just I'm really excited. I'm so proud of these girls.”

Saxony Lutheran dives into SEMO conference action with a date at Sikeston on Thursday, Sept. 12 at 6:30 pm. St. Vincent will host North County and Perryville in a double header tomorrow evening, Sept. 11.