Ronan finishes strong in Tip-Off Tournament
By BRANDON HANSEN For the Leader | Lake County Leader | UPDATED 11 months, 2 weeks AGO
Ronan's Alysea Bilbrey taps the ball back to Butte Central during Saturday's Tip-Off Tournament in Polson. (Bob Gunderson photo)
The Ronan Maidens opened their 2025 volleyball season with a full slate of competition at the annual NWA/SWA Tip-Off Tournament in Polson on Friday and Saturday, showing grit in pool play and finishing the weekend with a dramatic placement match victory.
After a challenging start that included losses to powerhouse Frenchtown (13-25, 22-25), Dillon (20-25, 14-25), and Hamilton (15-25, 12-25), Ronan found momentum against Corvallis, notching a straight-sets win, (25-21, 25-22). The Maidens also swept Butte Central (25-18, 25-11) to boost their confidence heading into the placement rounds.
Despite setbacks against Stevensville and Florence, Ronan earned the No. 5 seed out of the Northwestern A pool and faced off with Stevensville once again in the ninth-place match. This time, the Maidens refused to be denied. In a nail-biting three-set battle, Ronan edged Stevensville 28-27 in the opening frame, dropped the second 14-25 and then clawed back to take the deciding set 15-12.
The victory secured ninth place overall in the 14-team tournament and gave Ronan an early-season highlight to build on