BOZEMAN — There was just something different about this year's Huntley Project volleyball team.
Entering the season, the Red Devils weren't certain they were good enough to even play at the Class B state tournament. Heck, even at last week's Southern B divisional tournament, the Red Devils placed third.
But that thing that was different about this year's Huntley Project team turned out to be the same as every other Huntley Project team once they got to Worthington Arena. The Red Devils just know how to win at the state tournament, and they did so again Saturday, rallying from a two-set deficit to defeat Florence 13-25, 15-25, 25-22, 25-20, 15-10.
"I knew it was going to be a tough state tournament. I honestly, coming in, I was hoping to win a match and maybe bring home another trophy," said longtime Huntley Project coach Iona Stookey. "But for these kids, this group of girls, they worked so hard, and I'm just so proud of them because they definitely were the underdogs and they didn't quit."
It would have been easy for Project to fold in the championship match. Florence, which took out Southern B champion Baker in four sets in the third-place match earlier Saturday to get to the championship match, dominated the first two sets behind a strong block and stout defensive effort.
"They could have rolled over and died there (after the first two sets)," Stookey said of her team. "And I just said, we just got to get one set, and then we got to get some momentum and get the next set."
And that's exactly how it played out. The Red Devils eked out a narrow win in the third set and then more comfortably won the fourth.
In the fifth, they jumped out to an early advantage, but Florence rallied to tie it at 8-8. Then Stookey turned to seniors Maddison Akins and Sannah Windy Boy to put it away.
"If we were going to win it, it had to be with the ball and getting the ball to those two," Stookey said. "Sannah was struggling early, she kind of lost her confidence there for a while. And I just hugged her and I said, 'Remember, I'm glad you're on my team. I believe in you.' And then she kind of relaxed a little bit. And then I told (setter Gracie Norman), I said, 'You get the ball to Sannah and Maddie.'"
"It's the greatest feeling in the world to have your coach trust you like that and know that we can get the job done in a tight situation," said Akins, who delivered on her coach's confidence with 18 kills in the match, including a couple momentum-shifters in the decisive fifth set.
Windy Boy, too, bounced back from early struggles to put down a match-high 20 kills to go with three blocks. Gracie Norman contributed four blocks and dished out 48 assists.
Florence was led by Emory Ralston with 13 kills and Ava Philbrick with 12 kills and four blocks. The Falcons earned the second-place trophy but are still seeking the program's first state championship.
For Huntley Project, the championship numbers are staggering: four consecutive titles (the program's second career four-peat), seven in eight years and 16 overall. The Red Devils have now played in the championship match in 16 straight years and placed at least third in each of the past 19 seasons.
But this championship felt different after Project graduated six seniors off last year's team and returned little experience. Norman, for example, had never set in a varsity match prior to this season.
"It felt like we had to work our butts off to get here," Akins said. "Like even at divisionals, we didn't know we were going to make it here, let alone win the whole thing. We just really had to give it all we got for this last run.
"It's really about hard work and dedication and knowing the sport and loving what you do. I just feel amazing."
