Congrats to the Panther boys’ cross country team for winning their first state championship since 1992, adding another trophy to the growing Jefferson High collection. And the Lady Panthers took 7th out of 39 teams, with Peyton Stearns finishing 13th in 20:48.53 to make all-state. Great job, hoofers! Your hard work all year paid off big time.
Meanwhile, the Jefferson High volleyball squad closed out its regular season by sweeping Whitehall, Three Forks and Manhattan, all in straight sets. The Lady Panthers finished 10-2 in District 5B, second only to undefeated Broadwater. Ennis was third at 7-5, and Manhattan fourth at 5-7.
Against Whitehall, Jefferson built up a 21-8 lead in the first set and went on to win on an ace by Maddy Averill, 25-12. The second set was close in the early going, but a sneak kill by Cameron Toney put the Panthers up 18-10, Clara Genger made it 19-11 and the Panthers went on to win 25-15. Arena Faler powered over many hard hits in the third to lead the Panthers to a 25-15 win.
It took the Panthers a little while to get in the flow against Three Forks. But at 12-10 in the first, Faler slammed over four kills to give the Panthers a 16-11 lead and they went on to take the first set 25-20. In the second, a block by Ryian Eveland gave the Panthers a 6-4 lead and they went on to take the win 25-16. A quick start in the third put the Panthers up 6-2; Three Forks came back to pull to 8-5, but the power of the Panther hitters was too much for the Wolves and the Panthers took the win 25-20.
On Saturday, Jefferson took on Manhattan. The first set was close: After taking a 17-14 lead, the Panthers, playing with mostly subs, went on a run to make it 22-14 and went on to win 25-21. The second saw the Panthers open up a 15-7 lead. MacKenzie Layng put over a sneak to make it 16-9 and the Panthers closed it out, 25-15. Manhattan started the third with the first two points, but the Panthers put over the next 5 points. They went up 16-5 on an ace by Maria Mest and went on to win 25-15.
The District 5B tournament is this Thursday and Friday in Manhattan. The Panthers take on Lone Peak on Thursday at 12:30 p.m., with the winner playing the winner of the Ennis/Whitehall match at 4 p.m. Action continues Friday at 9 a.m., with the championship match starting at 6 p.m. Good luck, Panthers.
Faler leads the district with 183 kills, while Toney is second with 148. Eveland is second in blocks with 33.5, and Layng is third in assists with 268. Haleigh Henschel leads the District with 125 digs, with Maddy Averill second at 204.
And the Jefferson football team shut out Broadwater, 35-0 on Friday night in Townsend, earning a spot in the Class B football playoffs. The Panthers will travel to Glasgow this Saturday for their first-round match-up. Go Panthers!
