FINAL DAY AT MISSOULA TOURNEY

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By CHAD DUNDAS of the Missoulian | Posted: Sunday, October 25, 2009 12:20 am | No Comments Posted

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Forgive the Missoula Sentinel Spartans if things were a bit off key when they gathered on the court to belt out "We Are the Champions," at the end of the Missoula Invitational volleyball tournament.

The rest of the day, the Spartans were pretty much pitch perfect.

Sentinel won three matches at its own gym on Saturday - downing No. 3 Helena, No. 5 Missoula Hellgate and Kalispell Glacier - to claim the championship of the hometown tourney for the first time since the Missoulian began electronically archiving results in 1991.

"We need to sit down and try to figure out when was the last time Sentinel won this thing," said coach Patrick Hiller after the Spartans secured a 25-17, 25-23 win over the Wolfpack in the final.

Natalie Jones swatted nine kills and Morgan McCarthy added seven to lead Sentinel over Glacier, but the Spartans' first two wins of the day were perhaps the most satisfying.

Sentinel bounced back from what it saw as a disappointing 9-5 performance on Friday to defeat the top two squads in Western AA as the final day of play began.

The Spartans bested the Bengals 25-21, 25-19 in the 9 a.m. match, then beat the crosstown rival Knights 25-19, 17-25, 25-14 in the semifinals.

"To start out the way we did yesterday, so badly, the girls were all on each other (and) it was ugly, quite frankly," Hiller said. "So to battle back, slip in here ... and then obviously to beat the teams from our own conference that we're competing with, I think the girls are really going to take this one (to heart)."

Hellgate also ended the tournament on a high note, rallying from a game down in the consolation match to trump Helena 2-1 for third place.

After finishing as runner up in the 16-team event five times during the last 18 years, Sentinel looked fully in control for most of the best-of-three-game championship match.

Glacier scrapped to trim an early deficit to 15-13 in game one, only to have Sentinel slam the door with a 10-4 run that included a pair of aces from Anna Pershouse.

Pershouse, a 5-foot-8 junior who saw her first varsity action of the year during the tournament, ended with four of the Spartans' 10 team aces.

The Wolfpack didn't go away in the second game, forcing four ties and as many lead changes before senior setter Kelsi Becker scored the decisive point for Sentinel. With the Spartans leading 24-23, Becker - who also finished with 42 assists - smartly tipped a ball over the fingertips of two Glacier defenders to seal the deal.

"Kelsi is figuring out steadily that as she goes, the team goes," Hiller said. "Yesterday morning she ... just kind of worked through some frustrations and, you know, she's the captain. She's really figuring out that she has to buckle down sometimes. She has to be kind of the butt-kicker that says 'Get up, let's go.' She mixed it up today as well as I've ever seen it."

Lexy Boschee finished with eight kills to lead Glacier. Rachel Cutler and McKell Bennett each added two blocks, while Paige Latimer served up three aces.

Class AA finishes up its regular season next week. The Spartans have two more matches before the playoffs begin, hosting Helena on Tuesday and playing at Helena Capital on Friday.

Championship match

Sentinel def. Glacier, 25-17, 25-23.

Kills - Glacier 23 (Lexy Boschee 8), Sentinel 23 (Natalie Jones 9, Morgan McCarthy 7). Blocks - Glacier 4 (Rachel Cutler 2, McKell Bennett 2). Sentinel 3 (McCarthy, Jones). Digs - Glacier 14 (Cami Mathison 5), Sentinel 16 (Kimmy Kavran 6). Assists - Glacier 21 (Paige Latimer 5), Sentinel 43 (Kelsi Becker 42). Aces - Glacier 4 (Latimer 3), Sentinel 10 (Anna Pershouse 4).

Championship pool

First round - Missoula Sentinel def. Helena High 2-0; Missoula Hellgate def. Anaconda 2-1; Kalispell Glacier def. Butte 2-0; Helena Capital def. Kalispell Flathead 2-1.

Semifinals - Sentinel def. Hellgate 25-21, 25-19; Glacier def. Capital 25-20, 25-20.

Championship - Sentinel def. Glacier 25-17, 25-23.