Confidence and momentum can be fragile things in volleyball, but both the Columbia Falls Wildkats and the Frenchtown Broncs will head to the state tournament with plenty of both after finishing first and second, respectively, in the Northwest A Divisional Tournament last weekend at Libby High School.
The Lady Loggers evened up their conference record at 3-3 with a four-set victory against Whitefish, featuring a record-setting performance by Mahalah Wedel, who recorded 52 digs in the contest.
The Lady Loggers were looking to upset league leading Columbia Falls on Thursday, but the Wildkat front line shut down the Logger attack to pull out the four set win.
The Lady Loggers came out with guns blazing in both of their weekend matches but were only able to come away with a split against Polson and Frenchtown.
The Lady Loggers had an opportunity to see some different competition at the Bonners Ferry Invitational and claimed first place with a victory over Priest River, 25-21, 25-15.
The Lady Loggers’ powerful serve game carried them to their second nonconference volleyball victory of the season against the Troy Lady Trojans with set scores of 25-7, 25-12, 25-12.
The first 10 minutes of the Lady Loggers’ match against Whitefish on Saturday looked like they were in for a long night, but they quickly bounced back and dominated the Lady Bulldogs from the service line, winning 23-25, 25-18, 25-17, 25-17.
The Lady Loggers were looking for a little magic in their bid for a trip to the state tournament, but were not able to conjure a win against the Polson Pirates on Saturday.