Bravettes drill Big Sky in volleyball play-in match
<p>Flathead junior Emily Russell (3) cheers after a point during Flathead's playoff play-in win over Missoula Big Sky Thursday night at Flathead High School.</p>
<p>Flathead sophomore Timi Severson, front, and junior Kwyn Johnson make a block during Flathead's play-in win over Missoula Big Sky Thursday night at Flathead High School.</p>
No letdowns, no third set naps and no sweat.
The Flathead Bravettes downed visiting Missoula Big Sky 25-11, 25-7, 25-10 in Thursday's Western AA play-in match to next week's All-Class State Volleyball Tournament.
Hannah Sackett had 12 kills and Timi Severson added eight kills, four blocks, 11 digs and served three aces.
Those two may have led, but the Bravettes were all ‘on.'
"We could all tell right when we stepped on the court that we had the right kind of energy. We were focused, but excited. We were not goofing around, not lackadaisical," Sackett said.
"I felt like we all had a pretty good night. We were all on. We have been working hard for this all year and we are ready to go to state," she added.
"I had a lot of fun tonight," Severson said.
"It was pretty nerve-wracking playing for state, but we were confident. We were all on. Our passing was so good and setting was awesome, hitting was great. We just came out firing tonight," she said.
"Timi Severson had a great night," said Flathead coach Leon Wilcox.
The sophomore middle hitter "played with a lot of fire. She played to win. She was just fired up and it showed in the way she played," he said.
Flathead claims the No. 3 seed from Western AA and will play Eastern AA's No. 2 seed Billings West at noon next Thursday in Bozeman.
"We had great energy. Our bench was fantastic. It was a wonderful effort by everybody," said Wilcox.
"They brought energy and consistency for three straight games. We never let down one time. It's hard to put a perfect match together, but I think that's about as close as you can come.
"The thing was, I felt like it wasn't given to us. We earned it.
"Big Sky came out playing hard. (The Eagles) wanted to go to state. My girls surpassed their energy. They never let down once. Our blockers were on. We forced them to tip and our defense picked up all the tips.
"There were unforced errors on the other side of the net, but I think we created a lot of those by the way we played. We took away their offense.
"We still had errors, but (the Bravettes) never quit. Our defense was scrappy.
"This is the team they can be when they choose to play that way. We have to bring this kind of intensity and that kind of commitment for the whole tournament," he added.
Kills - Big Sky 10 (Ellen Wolferman 4), Flathead 29 (Hannah Sackett 12, Timi Severson 8); Assists - Big Sky 8 (Shannon O'Reilly 8), Flathead 26 (Alison Lunde 19); Blocks - Big Sky 1 (Brittany Erickson 1), Flathead 6 (Severson 4); Digs - Big Sky 31 (O'Reilly 8, Brielle Rolle 8), Flathead 48 (Severson 11); Aces - Big Sky 2 (No leader), Flathead 9 (Severson 3).
Western AA
Glacier def. Missoula Hellgate 25-13, 25-22, 23-25, 24-26, 15-6
Flathead def. Missoula Big Sky 25-11, 25-7, 25-10
Missoula Sentinel def. Helena Capita 25-12, 25-21, 22-25, 25-16
Eastern AA
Bozeman def. Butte 25-14, 25-8, 25-12
Billings Skyview def. Great Falls 20-25, 25-23, 25-18, 18-25, 17-15
Billings West def. CMR 25-10, 25-16, 25-18
Class AA state first round
Thursday
10 a.m. - Helena High vs. Billings Skyview
Noon - Flathead vs. Billings West
2 p.m. - Billings Senior vs. Glacier
4 p.m. - Bozeman vs. Missoula Sentinel
6 p.m. - Helena-Skyview winner vs. Flathead-West winner
8 p.m. - Senior-Glacier winner vs. Bozeman-Sentinel winner