Polson wins Ronan volleyball rivalry

Polson picked up a five-set rivalry victory over Ronan in Northwest A volleyball action on Tuesday, Oct. 10, winning by scores of 25-23, 25-23, 23-25, 22-25, 15-8.

Mckenna Hanson led Polson with 12 kills while Samantha Rensvold had 11. Avery Starr led the Pirates with 32 assists, while Julia Barnard had 25 digs.

Hanson also had 13 digs and three aces, while Carli Maley had three blocks. Starr had seven aces in the matchup.

Ronan was led by seven kills by Lauryn Buhr, Mckenna Corley, Maddy Illig, and Sierra Blood. Seattle Adams dished out 31 assists, while Buhr and Corley prowled the net with three blocks apiece. Nevaeh Perez had had two aces and 20 digs. Kailyn Marengo had 16 digs as well, while Blood had ten digs.

In the second set, Ronan rallied from a 17-6 deficit against Polson to tie things at 19 apiece, before Polson was able to get an ace from Star and a tip from Maley.

Polson improved to 9-3 on the year and 8-2 in league play, while the Maidens fell to 6-7 on the year and 5-6 in the Northwest A.

Lady Pirates score wins at Blockober

Polson placed fourth at the 2023 Blocktober Classic at the Butte Civic Center and Montana Tech on Friday and Saturday, Oct. 13-13, while going 5-2 in pool play and picking up three victories in championship bracket play.

Ronan won one match at the tournament as well.

Polson defeated East Helena 30-24, Fergus 30-19, Corvallis 30-26, Laurel 30-20, and Libby 30-16. The Lady Pirates fell to Frenchtown 30-27 and Jefferson 30-20.

In championship bracket play at the Butte Civic Center, Polson downed Whitefish 25-29, 25-21 and fell to Hardin 25-14, 22-25, 15-9. Polson then ripped off victories over Hamilton 25-8, 25-18 and Frenchtown 21-25, 25-21, 15-11 before falling to Jefferson 25-16, 25-16.

Ronan had losses to Hardin, Park, Bigfork, Dillon, Havre, Stevensville, and Anaconda in pool play, but the Maidens downed Miles City 30-26. In the copper bracket at Montana Tech, Ronan fell to East Helena and Park.

Lady Bulldogs pick up two wins

Mission won two matches last week to improve their record to 7-7 on the season. The Lady Bulldogs picked up a home victory over Troy 25-17, 25-23, 25-17 to cap off a busy week of action.

"Post-season for us is shaping up well," Mission Head Coach Marissa Mock said. "We have made tremendous strides from where we were at the beginning of the season. I’m excited to see my players perform to their highest potential."

In the game against Troy, Mission's Rowan McElderry led the team with nine kills, while Jada Domebo ran the offense with 16 assists. Izzy Evans was impressive on defense, posting 21 digs and notching two aces. Domebo also had two aces.

"Rowan McElderry is finding her groove," Mock said. "She has been putting up key blocks and hitting the ball very well into open spaces. Jada Domebo continues to dish out some great sets and put up amazing digs when I think the ball is dropping to the floor."

Against Eureka on Thursday, Oct. 12, Mission fell 18-25, 20-25, 28-26, 24-26, despite eight kills from McElderry and Cora Matt. Domebo notched 14 assists and 14 digs, while four Lady Bulldog players had two aces – Domebo, Wenona Tenas, McElderry, and Alecia Steele.

Rowan McElderry and Cora Matt each had two blocks in the matchup.

On Tuesday, Oct. 10, Mission defeated Mission Valley rival Charlo 25-22, 22-25, 25-22, 26-24. Evans notched 13 kills for the Lady Bulldogs, while McElderry had 12 kills.

"The win against Charlo felt good," Evans said. "We haven't played them in a few years, but they are a tough team with an athletic group of players."

Amelia Cronk had 20 assists for Mission, while Evans, Brooke Tanner, Kensey Burke, and McElderry each had two aces. Evans, Steele, and Matt each had two blocks.

Lady Vikings pick up two wins

Charlo picked up two victories last week, falling to Class B foe Mission in four on Tuesday, Oct. 10, but bouncing back to sweep St. Regis at home on Thursday, Oct. 12, and then capping things off with a five-set win over Thompson Falls on Saturday, Oct. 14, on the road.

Against Mission, the Bulldogs picked up the 25-22, 25-22, 22-25, 24-26 victory over the Lady Vikings. Charlo’s Leah Cahoon had eight kills, while Aida Cote had seven. Bryanne Zempel had 22 assists, and Shonlea Matt notched 26 kills. Darcy Coleman had three aces, while Cote also had four blocks.

While sweeping St. Regis 25-17, 25-21, 25-19, Charlo was led by Matt’s 23 digs. Aida Cote had eight kills. Behind the service stripe, Cahoon had five aces, while Zempel had 11 assists. Cote and Cahoon each had three blocks.

Against Thompson Falls, the match went the distance with Charlo coming out ahead 26-24, 25-16, 14-25, 21-25, 17-15. Cote had 12 kills, while Cahoon added 10. Cahoon also had four aces and four blocks to go along with 24 digs.

Cote notch 20 digs and three blocks. Zempel had 17 assists and an equal number of digs, while Karly Alder dished out 10 assists.

Charlo improved to 10-3 on the season.