D13C RDP: Lady Trojans repeat as District 13C champions

That set up a rematch of 2021, this time with Drummond as the favored squad and the Lady Blackhawks as the underdog. But the rematch proved that Seeley was not going to play David to Drummond’s Goliath as the Lady Trojans swept the match and punched their first-class tick back to Manhattan.

MISSOULA – For the second straight season the Drummond Lady Trojans claimed the crown of District 13C, earning the right to head east and play in the Western Divisional at Manhattan Christian.

But this time around, it was a much easier path to victory.

After receiving an opening round bye and beating Granite in the semifinals Thursday, Drummond had to get by just one foe to reach the Divisional for the second time in as many years. That foe was tournament host Valley Christian, who had used a five-set victory over Seeley Swan to reach the Winner’s Bracket final. But they proved no match for Drummond as the Lady Trojans swept them in straight sets.

The Lady Eagles went down to the consolation bracket where they face the Lady Blackhawks again, this time losing to Seeley in another five-set match to claim third in the event.

That set up a rematch of 2021, this time with Drummond as the favored squad and the Lady Blackhawks as the underdog. But the rematch proved that Seeley was not going to play David to Drummond’s goliath as the Lady Trojans swept the match and punched their first-class tick back to Manhattan.

“We came in and played Granite, Valley and Seeley … four, three, two and we came in one,” said DHS Paige Fickler, who in two years as won two District 13C title and will lead her team to its second Western Division tournament next Thursday. “We were untouched. We didn’t lose a set.”

When asked what the change was this year that made Drummond so dominant, Fickler responded with “We swing at the ball more times than the team we’re playing. The team that swings the most wins the most. … That’s the goal and we worked on getting those swings every single time. Tonight wasn’t a great example of that, but we spend a lot of time working on that and coverage. The time the girls have invested in this is incredible. I tell them what they need and they invest the time.”

When it came to why they won, senior setter Jesse Struna echoed her coach’s thoughts.

“We spent a lot time this summer working together, going to open gyms and camps, and we wanted to come to into the season ready,” said Struna.

Senior hitter Holly Hauptman was ecstatic at the team’s play, comparing last year’s miracle run to this year’s title.

“This was so good. Instead of being buried down at the bottom of the brackets we were on top the whole time,” she said. “We just all knew each other better. Last year we all played together and we knew what we had, so this year we could just go for it.”

It was a well-versed attack that led to the title, with junior Delaney Wagner leading the way with a team-high 13 kills. Hauptman and fellow senior Liz Perry each added six, drawing most of those attacks from the 27 assists dished out by Struna. She and Perry also had team bests in aces with three apiece.

SCORING

Drummond – 25/25/25 – 3

Seeley Swan – 21/17/21 – 0

DRUMMOND STATISTICS

Kills – Nelson 4, Hauptman 6, Wagner 13, Struna 2, Perry 6, Parsons 3

Blocks – Nelson 1, Perry 1

Assists – Struna 27

Digs – Rasor 6, Nelson 3, Hauptman 12, Wagner 1, Struna 5, Perry 1, Parke 11, Hicks 4, Parsons 1

Aces – Rasor 3, Nelson 1, Hauptman 1, Struna 3, Perry 3

Drummond def. Valley Christian

SCORING

Drummond – 25/25/26 – 3

Valley Christian – 12/18/24 – 0

DRUMMOND STATISTICS

Kills – Nelson 1, Hauptman 13, Wagner 8, Struna 3, Perry 9, Parsons 2

Blocks – Nelson 1

Assists – Nelson 1, Struna 30, Perry 1

Digs – Rasor 9, Nelson 1, Hauptman 8, Wagner 4, Struna 2, Perry 5, Parke 12, Hicks 5

Aces – Rasor 1, Hauptman 3, Perry 3

Granite splits Friday’s matches, finishes fourth

It was a tale of two tournaments for the Granite Lady Prospectors.

Having finished fourth in the regular season, they were smack dab in the center of the seven-team pack. In the tournament when they played a team above them in the standings they faltered, when they played below they swept.

But in a double elimination format that kind of play doesn’t bode well for longevity.

Granite started its Friday with a 3-1 win over Darby that advanced them to the semifinals of the Consolation Bracket. But that’s where they met Seeley Swan and the Lady Blackhawks were dead set on a rematch with Drummond, and thus beat the Lady Prospectors 3-1 to end their season.

In their win over Darby, sophomore Maya Flores hurt her ankle, further depleting the Granite roster and forcing Addison Spehar to shift into the Libero position.

Granite def. Darby

SCORING

Darby – 13/25/18/23 – 1

Granite – 25/22/25/25 – 3

Kills – Lee 7, Hill 7, MarFlores 3, Spehar 3, Tallon 2, Piar 11

Blocks – Lee 7, Piar 2

Assists – Lee 1, Tallon 22, Spehar 1

Digs – Lee 3, Hill 4, Mar Flores 2, MayFlores 18, Spehar 9, Tallon 9, Smith 7, Piar 17, Lilyquist 2

Aces – Tallon 1, Smith 2, Piar 2

Seeley Swan def. Granite

SCORING

Seeley Swan – 25/25/19/25 – 3