Polson, Corvallis nail down State A berths
Eureka's Remmi Stanger spikes the ball past Deer Lodge's Nia McClanahan during opening-round action at the Western B Divisional Volleyball Tournament in Thompson Falls on Thursday, Nov. 4. (Jeremy Weber/Daily Inter Lake)
RONAN — Polson won twice Thursday at the Western A Divisional volleyball tournament, putting the Pirates into next week’s State A tourney.
The Pirates beat Hamilton and Dillon to advance to Friday’s 6 p.m. winner’s bracket semifinal against Corvallis. The perennially strong Blue Devils beat Columbia Falls and Ronan to advance.
Five teams advance out of this tournament, compared to four out of the Eastern A. That means two teams that go 1-2 at the tournament will battle Friday at 8 p.m. for the fifth and final spot into state.
Updated pairings are below.
Western A Divisional
Ronan
(5 teams advance)
Thursday
Dillon def. Libby 25-13, 25-22, 25-19
Polson def, Hamilton 22-25, 25-12, 25-17, 25-22
Ronan def., Stevensville 25-18,25-11, 22-25, 25-15
Corvallis def. Columbia Falls 25-21, 25-19, 25-21
Polson def. Dillon 25-11, 27-25, 25-23
Corvallis def. Ronan, 3-0
Friday
Match 7 — Hamilton vs. Libby, 10 a.m., loser out
Match 8 — Columbia Falls vs. Stevensville, noon, loser out
Match 9 — Winner 7 vs. Ronan, 2 p.m.
Match 10 — Winner 8 vs. Dillon, 4 p.m..
Match 11 — Polson vs. Corvallis, 6 p.m., semifinal
Match 12 — Loser 10 vs. Loser 9, 8 p.m. winner takes fifth
Saturday
Match 13 — Winner 10 vs. Winner 9, 10 a.m. loser fourth
Match 14 — Winner 13 vs. Loser 11, Noon, loser takes third
Match 15 — Winner 11 vs. Winner 14, 2 p.m., championship
Match 16 — Second championship, 4 p.m., if necessary
Thompson Falls 2-0
THOMPSON FALLS — The host Thompson Falls Bluehawks won two matches
Western B, giving them a good shot at landing one of two spots the division has at the State B tournament next week.
The Bluehawks beat Missoula Loyola and Anaconda without dropping a set. They’ll face Florence, which swept both Deer Lodge and Eureka, at 5 p.m. today in the winner’s bracket semifinal.
The all-class state tournament begins Thursday at Breeden Field House.on the Montana State University campus in Bozeman.
Western B Divisional
(2 teams advance)
Thompson Falls
Thursday
Thompson Falls vs. Missoula Loyola, 25-10, 25-18, 25-18
Anaconda def. Bigfork, 14-25, 25-22, 25-22, 25-18
Florence def. Mission, 25-12, 25-12, 25-9
Eureka def. Deer Lodge, 3-0
Thompson Falls def. Anaconda, 3-0
Florence def. Eureka, 3-0
Friday
Match 7 — Missoula Loyola vs. Bigfork, 10 a.m., loser out
Match 8 — Mission vs. Deer Lodge, noon, loser out
Match 9 — Eureka vs. Match 7 winner, loser out
Match 10 — Anaconda vs. Match 8 winner, loser out
Match 11 — Thompson Falls vs. Florence, semifinal
Match 12 — Winner 9 vs. Winner 10, 6:45 p.m., loser takes fourth
Saturday
Match 13 — Winner 12 vs. Loser 11, 10 a.m., loser takes third
Match 14 — Winner 13 vs. Winner 11, 11:45 a.m., championship
Match 15 — Second championship, if necessary