Whitefish rocks Hardin in semis
BOZEMAN - Rock solid and ready to play for a state championship.
The Whitefish Bulldogs pulled out another five-game victory Friday night as they defeated Hardin 27-25, 21-25, 25-15, 17-25, 15-10 in the semifinal of the Class A state volleyball tournament at Brick Breeden Fieldhouse.
It's about more than volleyball now, according to Whitefish head coach
Jackie Fuller.
"They believe in each other," she said of the Bulldogs. "They've never
stopped believing. I think all you can say about these kids is 'wow.' They
never give up. They get frustrated, but they never give up."
"It was so much fun," setter Mandy McFadden said afterward. "It was really intense."
Tracy Schwada led the Whitefish effort with 16 kills and six blocks. Ashley Ferda added 15 kills and 22 digs and Courtney Ferda had 10 kills. McFadden
added 40 assists, three blocks and
13 digs.
"(The Bulldogs) believe deep down inside that they are destined for
success," Fuller added.
They'll have their chance at it at 3 p.m. today.
The opponent will be determined at 11 a.m. when Hardin takes on the winner of Fergus County/Billings Central.
"They get to enjoy this, but they've got to come back to work (Saturday),"
Fuller said.
"I think we're going to be ready," said sophomore Courtney Ferda.
Defense was a key Friday night against a taller, more experienced Hardin team.
"They came out ready to play us," Ferda said of the Hardin Bulldogs. "They were intense, too."
"They came out really strong," McFadden agreed.
Hardin took the early lead behind junior middle Cassie Hodges. Hodges,
listed at 6-foot-0, appeared much taller as she controlled the net in the early
going. That is, until she sprained her ankle and had to retire halfway through the first game.
She reappeared with a taped ankle late in the second game and put away the final hit as Hardin evened the match at one game all.
"She still played awesome," Ferda said. "But even when she was out, their team pulled it up. They still kept going."
Defense keyed the Bulldogs to a 25-15 third game win and it appeared momentum might carry Whitefish to an early night.
But the Hardin Bulldogs had other ideas.
Their hitting and blocking brought them to the deciding fifth game.
But on the Whitefish bench, Fuller was plotting and planning for that game. She pulled aside senior Katie Hodges and told her "you need to step up in game five."
"(Hodges) just came in and did some really great things for us," the coach said. "Her serving, her passing, she stepped up really good."
Fuller also made a plan for Cassie Hodges.
McFadden set the Whitefish hitters a little bit further over.
"She moves well. She's a great competitor, she's a great hitter, she's a great blocker. It's tough to go around her," Fuller said.
"We moved the ball away so the our hitters weren't straight one-on-one with her."
Defensively, the Bulldogs also put a double block on her. In the back row, the defenders were told to "sit down, get behind the ball and suck it up."
"We have some awesome defenders and they really stepped it up," McFadden said.
"They kept (the point) going even when everybody thought it was done," Ferda agreed. "Our blockers really stepped it up in that fifth game," she added.
It all worked.
Whitefish blasted out to a 5-1 lead.
And just when Hardin climbed back in and tied it at 7-all, Katie Hodges stepped in with three straight service aces. Hardin never really recovered.
Whitefish def. Hardin 27-25, 21-25, 25-15, 17-25, 15-10
Kills - Whitefish 51 (Tracy Schwada 16, Ashley Ferda 15, Courtney 10 Ferda 10), Hardin 48 (Mallory Minnick 18), Aces - Whitefish 10 (Katie Hodges 4, Kirsten Blackburn 3), Hardin 12 (Minnick 4); Assists - Whitefish 46 (Mandy McFadden 40), Hardin 40 (Darcy Torske 40); Blocks - Whitefish 14 (Schwada 6, McFadden 3), Hardin 9 (Cassie Hodges 2), Digs - Whitefish 81 (A. Ferda 22,