by Scott Sacry
The Florence volleyball team won the Western B Divisionals Championship in Anaconda on Saturday, November 9. This is the second year in a row they have won Divisionals and the 12th time in the last 15 years. In the Championship game they defeated Anaconda 3-0 (25-18, 25-14, 25-21).
Florence dominated Divisionals like a Republican candidate in a Ravalli County election. That is to say, they rolled through the competition.
In the four games they played, against St. Ignatius, Anaconda, Thompson Falls, and Anaconda again, Florence won all 12 of the sets.
Florence’s Kristy Duchien is in her 10th year as the Falcon head coach. “It may look like it was easy based on the scores,” said Duchien, “but we played a lot of hard games and sets, and we played some tough teams. Our girls have been playing really well and we hope to keep up the momentum going into state.”
Florence is the West’s top seed in the upcoming Class B State Tournament at the Brick Breeden Fieldhouse in Bozeman on Nov. 14-16.
“Last year at state we lost our first game,” said Duchien, “so we went to the losers’ side of the bracket and weren’t able to make it all the way back. This left everyone with a bad taste. Most of the players from last year are back this year, so that sense of unfinished business has motivated us all year.”
In their opening game at State, Florence plays Huntley Project, the South’s #3 seed, on Thursday, Nov. 14 at 12 p.m. Although they are the #3 seed, Huntley is a formidable opponent. They have won the last three Class B State Championships and six out of the last seven.
“The teams for the South are very strong, so we’re going to have to be at our best,” said Duchien. “Huntley is the real deal. Volleyball is a game of errors and momentum. Our girls have done a great job responding to adversity by making plays this year. We need to keep this playmaking mentality to be successful at state.”
In their first round Divisional game on Thursday, Nov. 7, Florence defeated St. Ignatius 3-0 (25-14, 25-15, 25-8). For Florence, Emory Ralston had 4 aces, 11 digs and 2 blocks, Ava Philbrick had 9 kills and 2 blocks, and Maggie Schneiter had 22
In their second round game, also on Thursday, they defeated Anaconda 3-0 (25-22, 25-18, 25-17). For Florence, Emory Ralston had 4 aces, 9 kills and 3 blocks, Maggie Schneiter had 19 assists and 13 digs, and Ava Philbrick had 3 blocks.
This sent them to the undefeated semifinal against Thompson Falls on Friday night where they defeated the Blue Hawks 3-0 (27-25, 25-20, 25-21). For Florence, Dia Jenkins had 2 aces and 20 digs, Elise Schneiter had 2 aces, Emory Ralston had 12 kills, Maggie Schneiter had 36 assists, Ava Philbrick had 5 blocks.
Finally, in the championship match on Saturday afternoon, they played Anaconda for a second time and won 3-0 (25-18, 25-14, 25-21) to take the Divisional title. For Florence, Dia Jenkins had 2 aces, Emory Ralston had 10 kills, Maggie Schneiter had 25 assists and 4 blocks, Ava Philbrick had 4 blocks, and Ella Goeltz had 12 digs.