BOZEMAN — The Class C state volleyball tournament kicked off Thursday morning at Brick Breeden Fieldhouse on the Montana State University Campus.
Overviews from Thursday’s matches are below. For updated scores and pairings, please click here.
Click scores for video highlights.
BELT DEF. ENNIS 25-21, 19-25, 17-25, 25-13, 17-15
Belt rallied from a 2-1 deficit to defeat Ennis in five sets and move on to Friday night’s undefeated semifinal to face Northern C foe Simms.
Kyelie Marquis had 21 kills and four blocks and Abby Gliko had 17 kills to lead Belt. Marquis also had a team-high 29 digs. Kolby Pimperton had 49 assists and four aces.
Ennis will face the Plentywood/Bridger winner in loser-out action on Friday afternoon.
SIMMS DEF. MANHATTAN CHRISTIAN 25-16, 21-25, 25-16, 27-25
Lissy and Janessa Willekes shined again for Simms, leading the Tigers past Manhattan Christian and to Friday’s undefeated semifinal.
Lissy tallied a game-high 25 kills, while Janessa had 11 kills, four aces and four digs. Maddie Bloom had 42 assists for the Tigers in the win.
Kellie Van Kirk led Manhattan Christian with 14 kills. The Eagles will face the winner of Hobson-Moore-Judith Gap/Scobey in loser-out action on Friday afternoon.
ENNIS DEF. SCOBEY 25-18, 18-25, 25-20, 25-14
The defending state champion Ennis Mustangs dispatched of first-round foe Scobey in four sets to move on to Thursday’s quarterfinal round to face Belt, a rematch of last year’s title match.
Jourdain Klein led the way for Ennis with 29 kills, just one less than Scobey’s 30 as a team. Klein also had five blocks while younger sister Shelbey had two. Whitney McKitrick had 26 assists, and Klein and McKitrick led Ennis with two aces each.
Kylee Cook had 11 kills and Kortney Nelson had 10 for Scobey. The Spartans will face Hobson-Moore-Judith Gap in loser-out action on Friday.
BELT DEF. HOBSON-MOORE-JUDITH GAP 25-21, 25-15, 22-25, 25-15
Belt had a three-headed attack lead the way to victory over Hobson-Moore-Judith Gap and propel the Huskies to Thursday evening’s quarterfinals. Kyelie Marquis had 15 kills to lead Belt, while Morgan Cooper and Abby Gliko each had 14.
Kolby Pimperton had 40 assists and Adelle Meissner had 34 digs for Belt. Cooper and Marquis also had 26 digs each.
Brianna Bargum had eight kills to lead the Titans. Hobson-Moore-Judith Gap will move to loser-out play on Friday at noon.
SIMMS DEF. BRIDGER 25-23, 13-25, 25-21, 12-25, 15-8
Lissy and Janessa Willekes combined for 22 kills and nine blocks to lead Simms to a thrilling five-set victory over Bridger in the first round of the Class C state volleyball tournament on Thursday. The Tigers move on to face Manhattan Christian in Thursday’s quarterfinal round.
Maddie Bloom added 28 assists, four digs and three aces for the Tigers, who were beat in every statistical category other than aces.
Bridger’s Jessica Adkins had 16 kills and Jenna Kallevig had 13. Adkins also had four blocks. Emily Adkins had 22 assists and five aces for the Scouts. Bridger will face Plentywood in loser-out action Friday morning.
MANHATTAN CHRISTIAN DEF. PLENTYWOOD 25-11, 17-25, 26-24, 21-25, 15-9
Kellie VanKirk had 15 digs and seven aces, while Kiersten VanKirk recorded 15 assists to lead Manhattan Christian to a five-set victory over Plentywood in the opening match of the Class C state volleyball tournament on Thursday. The Eagles advance to Thursday evening’s quarterfinal round against Simms, while the Wildcats fall to loser-out action on Friday morning.
The VanKirks led a balanced Manhattan Christian club, which received 11 kills from Ellie Kuperus and 15 more assists from Taylor Devries.
Liv Wangerin had 17 kills and Brenna Oaks added 14 assists and four blocks for Plentywood in the loss. The Wildcats meet Bridger on Friday morning.
