Volume XXI, Number 15

Wednesday, November 16, 2005

Sports at a Glance

All stories by Jean Schurman

Blue Devils finish fourth

Lady Pirates stopped at state

The surprising Blue Devils worked their way through the loser's bracket to finish in fourth at the State Volleyball tournament in Bozeman last weekend. Maybe it was their stamina, or maybe it was their will, but the Blue Devils held on, stayed focused and worked their way through, finishing one place higher than last year.

"They went beyond my expectations this year," said coach Jim Striebel. "Both last weekend and this weekend, they really rose to the occasion."

Corvallis opened their tournament run against Hardin on Thursday afternoon in the Brick Breeden Field House at Montana State University. Hardin has one of the top players in the state on their roster, Cassie Hodges, and she made an impact on the Blue Devils from the beginning of the match. Hodges kept the Corvallis players off their game with her thundering kills and the ability to put the ball down anywhere on the court. But, the Blue Devils were not to be overlooked.

After losing the first two games, the Blue Devils found their groove and came out strong. They slowly began working their way around Hodges and serving the ball away from her. A kill by Kasie Condor gave Corvallis the lead. A net serve by Tisha Smith and Hardin's Darcy Torske tied the game back up. Then Alicia Nisly stepped up to serve for Corvallis. The Blue Devils kept the ball in play for two points. Then Bonnie Burke slapped down a kill to give Corvallis an edge. Another point and the Blue Devils had a win. Hardin came back strong in the fourth game and built up a sizable lead before Corvallis was able to get going. Hardin took the fourth game and the match. "Hodges is such a dominant player," said Striebel. "Once we started hitting away from her, we did much better."

Corvallis came back to play Bigfork in the loser's bracket on Friday afternoon. After losing the first game, Corvallis played tough and claimed the next game. But Bigfork was not to be outdone. They took the third game before falling to Corvallis in the final two games of the match.

"Bigfork is a very scrappy team," said Striebel. "They are tricky. They don't have any big hitters, but they just keep the ball in play and make you make mistakes."

He went on to say the Blue Devils had defeated the Vals twice before this season in tournaments and felt as though they could handle whatever Bigfork served them. One downfall, however, Corvallis' outside hitter Tisha Smith sprained her ankle late in the match.

"We iced it, and tried to keep the swelling down," said Striebel. "We did play her some to keep it loose but Sara Nelson stepped in and did an outstanding job in Tisha's place."

Striebel must have known something. After defeating Bigfork, the next foe on the bracket sheet was the loser of the Whitefish/Anaconda match. Corvallis had played both teams but was really looking forward to handing Anaconda some of their own medicine.

Last week at the Divisional, Corvallis played a marathon of games and fell to the Copperheads in five game. This time it would be different.

"They had beaten us five times this year," said Striebel. "It was the highlight of the day, getting to lay them again and play them well. We were a little fresher and beat them in four."

With Carmen Burdette digging in the back row and Peterson blocking and slapping down serves, the Blue Devils took an early lead in Game 1 and held on to win, 25-20. Game 2 went the way of the Copperheads but that was the last gasp for the Anaconda team. Corvallis took Game 3, 25-21 and Game 4, 25-22, to take the match.

That win set up the match for fourth place against Havre. Corvallis was gaining momentum but couldn't stop the Blue Ponies from the north. Peterson led her team with 21 kills and two blocks. She also had three aces and 20 digs.

"Maria had just an incredible tournament on Friday," according to Striebel. "There were times when she was unstoppable. She was very aggressive. They couldn't block her. She was playing her best."

In the end, the terrific play by the Corvallis Blue Devils was not enough and they fell, 3 games to 2. The fourth place finish was the highest finish for any Corvallis team according to Striebel.

He said it wasn't the best season for the Blue Devils. "We started out losing to Polson, who finished fifth in the Northwest A Division. But they just kept getting better and better while Dillon and Anaconda hit a plateau. In order to compete with teams like Whitefish and Hardin, you have to have kids that have the guts to get out at the state tournament and play. We did. It was fun."

Hardin def. Corvallis 25-17, 25-22, 21-25, 25-16
Kills -- Corvallis 39 (Maria Peterson 17), Hardin 44 (Cassie Hodges 26). Blocs -- Corvallis 4 (Kasie Condor 3), Hardin 8 (Hodges 3). Digs -- Corvallis 69 (Carmen Burdette 13, Bonnie Burke 13), Hardin 36 (Maggie Joyce 7). Assists -- Corvallis 31 (Adrienne Bull 22), Hardin 30 (Darley Torskie 28). Aces -- Corvallis 5 (Peterson 2), Hardin 9 (Torskie 5).

Corvallis def. Bigfork 24-26, 25-19, 22-25, 25-22, 15-7
Kills -- Corvallis 48 (Maria Peterson 19, Tisha Smith 17), Bigfork 50 (Mary Hall 15, Alyssa Fierro 9). Blocks -- Corvallis 8 (Peterson 3, Kasie Condor 3), Bigfork --Bigfork 5 )Fierro 2, Whitney Wilson 2). Digs -- Corvallis 94 (Peterson 19, Carmen Burdette 14), Bigfork 93 (Hall, Trisha Smith 20). Assists -- Corvallis 39 (Peterson 9, Adrienne bull 17), Bigfork 41 (Cayla Fox 19, Clara Davis 18). Aces -- Corvallis 7 (Bonnie Burke 3, Peterson 3), Bigfork 8 (Sami Wade 5).

Corvallis def. Anaconda 25-20, 17-25, 25-21, 25-22
Kills -- Anaconda 43 (Ashley Littlefield 10, Sami Barkell 10, Heather Jones 9), Corvallis 31 (Maria Peterson 15, Kasie Condor 5). Blocks -- Anaconda 11 (Jones 7), Corvallis (Condor 4, Peterson 3). Digs -- Anaconda 59 (Dani Dulany 10, Jessie Moodry 9), Corvallis 69 (Carmen Burdette 14, Peterson 11). Assists -- Anaconda 35 (Courtney Austin 19, Danelle Parrow 16), Corvallis 22 (Adrienne Bull 19). Aces -- Anaconda 7 (Kerri Orrino 3, Jones 2), Corvallis 7 (Bonnie Burke 3, Bull 1).

Havre 3, Corvallis 2 (loser takes fourth)
Havre def. Corvallis 22-25, 25-19, 25-15, 21-25, 15-7
Kills -- Havre 60 (Lena Suck 21, Carmen Neuens 11), Corvallis 37 (Maria Peterson 21, Tisha Smith 10). Blocks -- Havre 7 (Signe Hillson, Suck), Corvallis 6 (Kasie Condor 3, Peterson 2). Digs -- Havre 81 (Suck 21, Karissa Olson 17), Corvallis 79 (Peterson 20, Carmen Burdette 11). Assists -- Havre (Alexa Lipp 51), Corvallis 29 (Adrienne Bull 26). Aces -- Havre 8 (Kelsey Evans 3, Suck 2), Corvallis 11 (Bonnie Burke 3, Peterson 3).

The Lady Pirates of Victor had a great season. However, their experience at the State Tournament left something to be desired. After playing a strong first game of the tournament against Great Falls Central, they lost the next five games and went out in two matches.

"It was a great season," said first-year coach Gayle McLean. "However it was a bad state (tournament)."

Victor opened against Great Falls Central who had not lost this season. The Mustangs were led by twins Carolyn and Kathleen Geschwill, 6' seniors. Although Victor controlled the first game of the match, the Mustangs quickly shed their nervousness at being at the state tournament.

Victor was aggressive in the first game and won, 25-18. Katie Jolley worked hard at the net and had an impact on the girls from Great Falls. However, the second game was not more of the same.

Although Victor took an early lead when Amanda Burnett served up four straight points including and ace, and then BreeAnna Hochhalter served up three more points, the Mustangs were there for every volley. Great Falls Central came back to tie and then claim the victory at 25-27.

"We lost our momentum," said McLean. "They worked hard and played hard but weren't able to put it together."

Great Falls took Game 3, 25-18, behind the play of the Geschwill twins. Shandel Weeks played strong for Victor and had a couple of kills in the game. Victor had lost all momentum by Game 4 and fell, 25-16.

With the loss, Victor moved to loser-out action Friday morning. There, they met up with Hysham. Hysham was still stinging from their defeat by Park City on Thursday and were in a mood to take no prisoners. Playing not to lose rather than playing to win is never a good thing and the Lady Pirates' game Friday morning was a perfect example of that. Hysham won in three straight games, putting Victor out of the tournament.

"Our season went great," said McLean. "They did a really great job with their performance. This was my first year as head coach and I learned a lot. I'm looking forward to next year."

Victor finished their season with a 21-5 record, including the Western Divisional Championship.

Great Falls Central def. Victor 25-18, 25-27, 18-25, 16-25.
Kills -- Victor 30 (Amanda Burrington 8, Katie Jolley 7, Shandel Weeks 5), Great Falls 44 (Carolyn Geschwill 24, Kathleen Geschwill 19). Blocks -- Victor 8 (Jolley 4), Great Falls 0. Digs -- Victor 91 (Burrington 21), Great Falls 97 (C. Geschwill 22). Assists -- Victor 26 (BreeAnna Hochhalter 14), Great Falls 31 (RaeAnn HeavyRunner). Aces -- Victor 16 (Amanda Burnett 13), Great Falls 11 (Rachel Laugbach 4).

Hysham def. Victor 25-14, 25-7, 25-16
Kills -- Hysham 41 (Brooke Zent), Victor 15 (Shandel Weeks 6). Blocks -- Hysham 24 (Zent 19), Victor 4 (Katie Jolley 2). Digs -- Hysham 24 (Jena Lackman 6), Victor 30 (BreeAnna Hochhalter 6, Emalee Smith 5). Assists -- 25 (Darlie Cunningham 25), Victor 11 (Kelly Berk 6, Hochhalter 5). Aces -- Hysham 5 (Nicole Ickes 2, Cunningham 2), Victor 4 (Berk 2).