Panthers capture tourney title at Choteau

Jefferson High’s volleyball team had a good week, defeating Deer Lodge in three games Thursday evening and then taking top honors at the Choteau tournament on Saturday.

The varsity was not alone in overcoming the Deer Lodge Wardens; the C squad and JV also finished out front in their competitions. The varsity finished with lopsided victories, 25- 12, 25-15, 25-13, but the games were closer in the early going than the final scores would indicate.

The Wardens took a 3-1 lead in game one before kills by Jadyn Armstrong and Ellie Evertz put the Panthers up 4-3. A tap kill by Emily McGinnis made it 9-4, Panthers, and after the Wardens narrowed the gap, an ace by Evertz and three kills by Haydin Henschel put the Panthers up 19-11. They finished it out with a 6-2 run to win 25-12. Game two was close in the early going. An ace by Henschel and a kill by Leah Vossler tied the game at 4, but then the Wardens took over to hold the lead until a block kill by Simonie Mendenhall tied the game at 8. A nice dig by Kaela Rosenbaum kept the ball alive for the Panthers, and two aces by Aubrey McMaster gave the Panthers an 18-11 lead. The Panthers finished it off with an ace by Vossler and two kills by Henshel, giving the Panthers a 25-15 win. The third game found the Wardens flagging and the Panther captured a convincing 25-13 win to take the match in three.