There was plenty for Panther fans to celebrate at the Southern B Divisional Volleyball Tournament in Belgrade over the weekend as JHS qualified for the State Class B Volleyball Tournament in Bozeman this week. Qualifying for the first time since 2013, the Panthers are one of only eight teams from Class B to make the big tourney. Other qualifiers: Huntley Project, Three Forks, Joliet, Florence-Carlton, Fairfield, Shelby and Lincoln County.
The tournament runs Thursday, Friday and Saturday at the Brick Breeden Fieldhouse at Montana State University, with competitions going on at the same time for Class AA, A, B and C. The Lady Panthers will face Florence-Carlton, the first place team out of the west, at 10 a.m. Thursday, the first match of the tournament. With action taking place on four courts, Class B will be on the east side of the stadium, to the right side after entering the south entrance.
A tournament bracket appears below. All Session tickets are $23 adult, $17 student, Thursday or Friday All Day pass is $9 adult, $7 student, and Saturday All Day passes are $7 adult, $5 student.
Achieving a tournament berth is a great accomplishment for the Panthers and Coach Mike Majors. Majors was in his first year at the helm in 2013 when the Panthers last competed at the big show. At the divisional tournament that year, they prevailed in a 39-37 match with Colstrip, one of four overtime contests they played on their way to fourth place at divisional. The 2013 Panthers also played in a 10 a.m. Thursday match with Florence-Carlton for their first outing at State.
THE DIVISIONAL MATCHES
The Panthers started the divisional tournament playing the Colstrip Fillies, the number one seed out of the 3B district. It took the Panthers a little while to settle into their flow. Colstrip put down the first five points before Emily McGinnis put down a kill to put the Panthers on the scoreboard. Ellie Evertz, Simonie Mendenhall, Leah Vossler and Haydin Henschel gave the Panthers some life with spikes. Blocks by Aubrey McMaster and Mendenhall and an ace by Vossler brought the score to 9-9 but the next five points went to Colstrip. Kills by Callie Warfle and McGinnis kept the Panthers in the game, but the Fillies took the win 25-14.
The Panthers turned things around in the second game. Katy Twichel put the Panthers up 7-2 and a kill by Henschel stretched the Panther advantage to 12-3.
As the Fillies mounted a comeback, Jadyn Armstrong provided some great defense and key saves to keep the Panthers on top. After Colstrip narrowed the Panther lead to 22-20, good net work by Mendenhall and Henschel plus powerful serves by Vossler lifted the Panthers to a 25-20 second game win.
A block by McMaster started game three and the Panthers put down the first six points. A pair of kills by McGinnis and an ace by Evertz made it 9-3, Panthers. Twichel made it 11-5 with a tip and 12-6 with another kill and the Panthers took the win 25-20 to take a two games to one advantage.
The fourth game was tight all the way with Colstrip coming out on top 25-21. After Colstrip pulled to a four point lead, Emma Stout served up an ace, Mendenhall, Evertz and Warfle each delivered a blow at the net, and the Panthers pulled within one. Despite their best efforts, the Panthers just could not catch the Fillies, though, and the match was tied at two games apiece.
The teams were tied repeatedly in the early going of game five before the Panthers started a run and went up 9-5 with great dig by Abby Rosenbaum and a kill by Warfle. A kill by McGinnis and strong serving by McMaster led to a 15-7 game and match win.
FACING THE RED DEVILS
The victory put the Panthers in a match with Huntley Project, the top seed out of the eastern half of the division, at 6 p.m. The first game saw some nerves show up for the Panthers, and Project went up 9-4. McMaster put down a kill after a Panther time out to make it 9-5, Project, but the Red Devils went on a 16-6 run to take the win 25-19.
The Panthers got better each game after that. Game two the Panthers were down 16-6 before making a run. Warfle put down a kill to erase half the deficit and set the score at 16-11, Red Devils, but Project outscored the Panthers 9-8 the rest of the way to win 25-19. Game three was an outstanding game to watch, the score was tied 10 times in the early going. Mendenhall buried the ball on the Project side five times, and scrappy play by the back row that led to good sets gave the Panthers a 24-21 lead. A pair of kills by McGinnis and a key block by Mendenhall closed out the game with a 27-25 Panther win. With ten state titles since 2003, the Red Devils have a tradition of volleyball excellence that is hard to match, and pulling out the game win was a big moment for the Panthers.
In game four the teams were tied at 1, 2 and 3 before Huntley went on a run to go up 18-8. The Panthers could not recover and lost the game 25-13.
SECURING A STATE BERTH
The loss put the Panthers in a must win game with Forsyth on Friday afternoon. The loser would be done, but the winner would advance to State, so the stakes were high. The Panthers took an early lead, powered by spikes from McGinnis, Evertz and Warfle plus great serves by McMaster. An ace by Henschel, followed short time later by an ace by Warfle, gave the Panthers a 16-8 lead and they went on to win game one 25-12.
The flow changed in game two as Forsyth jumped out to a 14-4 lead. The Panthers kept chipping away at the score and pulled to within two, 23-21, Forsyth, but could not get any closer. Forsyth pulled out a 25-21 win.
That great comeback by the Panthers set the tone for game three. Two blocks by Mendenhall, a kill by Warfle and an ace by McGinnis put the Panthers up 9-3. Blocks by Evertz, Mendenhall and McMaster, along with tremendous saves by Armstrong, made it 19- 10, Panthers. McGinnis inked her 12th and 13th kills of the match, and Vossler finished the game off with a pair of kills to make it 25- 18, Panthers.
Leading two games to one, the Panthers sealed the match win and State berth in game four with a 25-14 win, lifted largely by an 8-point service run by McMaster coupled with great net work by McGinnis, Evertz, Warfle, Twichel and Mendenhall.
THIRD/FOURTH MATCH
Just a short time later the Panthers had to play Joliet for a chance to take at least third and possibly higher. All three games were close with Joliet getting the edge 25-21, 25-23, 29-27. A great match to watch. All three could have certainly gone the other way but it was not to be this time.
Huntley Project took the divisional title, with Three Forks finishing second and Joliet third. All three will be at the State tournament with the Panthers, who will be looking to overcome some very tough teams.
The competition is sure to be exciting, and Panther fans who fill the stands will not regret cheering on the Panthers. For those who cannot attend, the Panther games will be broadcast on the Jefferson County emergency radio stations: 102.3 in Basin, 105.9 in Montana City, 100.3 in Jefferson City, 103.7 in Elk Park, 105.9 in Boulder. The broadcasts will also be available online at streamingaudiosolutions.com under the Jefferson High School link.
FOOTBALL PLAYOFFS
The last of the local teams competing in the Class B football playoffs were eliminated Saturday. Eureka shut out Manhattan, and Shelby prevailed over Whitehall 16-13. In other games, Fairfield beat Huntley Project 36-21, and Missoula Loyola defeated Colstrip 27-18. This week Fairfield plays Eureka and Loyola is at Shelby to determine which two teams will play for the championship
