Wolfpack 2nd; Bravettes 3rd at Missoula Invite

MISSOULA - The Glacier Wolfpack volleyball team wound up second at the Missoula Invitational for the second straight year.

Helena High defeated Glacier 25-23, 25-20 in the championship match on Saturday.

The Wolfpack was 2-1 on the final day with wins over Butte (25-15, 25-19) and Flathead (26-24, 21-25, 25-15). Flathead defeated Missoula Sentinel in the third-fourth place match (25-17, 22-25, 25-22).

"I'm very pleased with our competitive level," said Glacier coach Christy Harkins.

"Helena High had a great weekend. They (Bengals) were playing very well. We were right there with them all the time. We competed well, we just didn't have enough," Harkins said.

The Wolfpack beat Butte in the first game of the day, then defeated Flathead in the semifinal to get to the championship.

The Wolfpack is 3-0 versus Flathead this season.

"That was a high energy, very intense match. Crosstown just brings that out," Harkins said. "Every play is intense. We stepped it up in Set 3."

Flathead coach Leon Wilcox was also pretty pleased with how the Bravettes came out of the tournament.

They were 19-6 in sets played for the weekend and 3-1 on Saturday. In addition to Glacier and Sentinel matches, the Bravettes also played Helena Capital (25-18, 25-23) and Great Falls High (23-25 25-15, 25-21).

"There were a few downs. Potentially we could have finished better, but overall it was a very good weekend," Wilcox said.

The match that stuck out for Wilcox was Flathead's three-set win over Missoula Sentinel.

The Bravettes won the first set, but started out with a 17-3 deficit in the second set.

"We kind of took a nap. But we fought back to 18-22.

"From there, momentum carried us. It was a battle. It was fun. Everybody was into it. It was great," he said.

"Hannah Sackett was out of her mind, amazing today. She put on a show. It left no doubt in my mind that she's the best player in the state. The longer the day went the higher she was jumping. She was unstoppable," he said.

"She looked like the kid who is getting recruited by a lot of schools," he added. "Her level went up about two notches. It was amazing. I can't think of another other word.

"But all the kids really gutted it out," Wilcox said.

"We played nine straight sets, back-to-back. You could tell we were tired. But they fought and fought and fought. I think everybody really matured today," he added.

"They found something in themselves they are really excited about.

"One of the greatest things we got out of this tournament was our last match (against Sentinel).

"It was a great opportunity for those girls to find a way to dig deep and step up and compete."

The coach also complimented the defensive efforts of Emma Lawrence-Yee and Sarah Aylor.

"They had a great day with passing and defense. And a fantastic job all weekend from our bench," he added.

Championship match

Helena High def. Glacier 25-23, 25-20

Kills - 23 (Lexy Boschee 8, Rachel Cutler 7); Blocks - 6 (Cassidy Hashley 3); Assists - 23 (Paige Latimer 21); Digs - 28 (Cami Mathison 12); Aces - 4 (Latimer 3)

Semifinals

Glacier def. Flathead 26-24, 21-25, 25-15

Kills - Glacier 41 (Boschee 14, Cutler 13), Flathead 32 (Hannah Sackett 11, Cassie Krueger 8); Blocks - Glacier 5 (Tiffany Marks 4), Flathead 6 (Kwyn Johnson 5); Assists - Glacier 34 (Latimer 32), Flathead 30 (Alison Lunde 14, Emily Russell 14); Digs - Glacier 42 (Mathison 13, Latimer 10), Flathead 63 (Sarah Aylor 24); Aces - Glacier 4 (Mathison 3), Flathead 6 (Sackett 3).

First Round

Glacier def. Butte 25-15, 25-19

Kills - 26 (Boschee 11); Blocks - 2 (Hashley 2); Assists - 26 (Latimer 25); Digs - 30 (Mathison 8, Cutler 7); Aces - 3 (NA)

Flathead stats

Flathead def. Helena Capital 25-18, 25-23

Kills - Flathead 26 (Sackett 13); Assists - Flathead 24 (Lunde 13), Blocks - Flathead 4 (Danika Johnson 2, Kwyn Johnson 2); Digs - Flathead 38 (Sackett 14); Aces - Flathead 4 (Sackett 2).

Flathead def. Great Falls 23-25 25-15, 25-21

Kills - Flathead 37 (Sackett 16, D Johnson 9); Assists - Flathead 30 (Lunde 16); Blocks - 5 (Timi Severson 5); Digs - Flathead 38 (Aylor 16); Aces - Flathead 10 (Sackett 5).

Flathead def. Missoula Sentinel 25-17, 22-25, 25-22

Kills - Flathead 44 (Sackett 25,Krueger 9, Kwyn Johnson 8) Assists - Flathead 41 (Emily 22); Blocks - Flathead 6 (Danika 4); Digs - Flathead 69 (Sackett 22, Aylor 15); Aces - Flathead 2 (Severson 1, Lunde 1).