Mavericks To Make State Volleyball Debut

Divisional Tournament

North Country kicked off their Divisional tournament with a four-set win over Jordan Nov. 3.

NC 25 J 19

NC 24 J 26

NC 25 J 12

NC 25 J 11

We started this match out great. We fell a little out of sync in set two when Jordan won but we turned it around and really got our flow going in sets two and three. Jordan had a few really good servers that got rolling in set two which threw our attacking off a bit.

Aces: Paige Wasson, Kendall Scheffelmear, Kora LaBrie, and Kennedy Simonson each with 2

Kills: Teagan Erickson 24, Paige Wasson 16, Kendall Scheffelmear 12, Mattea McColly 6

Assists: Paige Wasson 29, Kenndy Simonson 12, Berkley Hillman 6

Digs: Paige Wasson 16, Kora LaBrie 15, Kendall Scheffelmear 9

Blocks: Mattea McColly and Kendall Scheffelmear each with 2 and BaiLee McColly with 1

The win moved the Mavericks up the bracket to face Broadus that evening. North Country won the match in five sets.

NC 25 B 23

NC 19 B 25

NC 25 B 17

NC 13 B 25

NC 15 B 7

This match was so much fun having hard hitters go against each other. In the sets we lost, we got really hung up on one or two of their servers. So when we lost the fourth set and then lost the coin toss, I felt pretty confident when I saw he [the Broadus coach] started in a different rotation that we were really going to be in control of the match. I believed our matchups in the front row were better and more dominant than their front row in set five. We did a great job in this match of playing defense and getting to where we needed to be.

Aces: Paige Wasson 5, Mattea McColly 3, Kora LaBrie 2, Kennedy Simonson 1

Kills: Teagan Erickson 21, Paige Wasson 14, Kendall Scheffelmear 10 and Mattea McColly 3

Assists: Paige Wasson 26, Kennedy Simonson 11

Digs: Kora LaBrie 12, BaiLee McColly 9

Blocks: Teagan Erickson 2 and BaiLee McColly 1

The win advanced North Country to the undefeated semifinals Friday evening where they faced the Circle Wildcats. Circle defeated North Country in three sets despite a rally in the final set by the Mavericks.

NC 14 C 25

NC 21 C 25

NC 27 C 29

This match was our worst passing match of the tournament. We really let their servers get to us. Our younger kids were feeling the pressure and tried to settle their nerves fast but it didn't happen as we wanted it to. We talked during practice this week about how stressful this tournament is over Districts and how each person needed to be in a focused controlled state of mind to make it to State. We just didn't get it done in this match. 

Aces: Paige Wasson and Mattea McColly each with 2

Kills: Teagan Erickson 22, Paige Wasson 16, and Kendall Scheffelmear 5

Assists: Paige Wasson 21, Kenndy Simonson 12, and Berkley Hillman 5

Digs: Paige Wasson 19, Kora LaBrie 15

Blocks: Teagan Erickson 2

The Mavericks moved to the back side of the bracket where they faced Froid/Lake Saturday morning, in a rematch of the District championship match. North Country exacted their revenge with a five-set win.

NC 25 FML 16

NC 25 FML 19

NC 19 FML 25

NC 13 FML 25

NC 15 FML 9

We came out ready to play in sets one and two but had a few bumps in sets three and four where we got tight and nervous because it was a do-or-die situation. In set five we relaxed and controlled the momentum from the first serve and never let up. I told the kids before this match that our juniors and seniors were going to serve so they had to handle that pressure and it freed our freshmen and sophomores from having to burden that and gave them a little breathing room and one less thing to worry about which in turn focused them better.

Aces: Kora LaBrie and Paige Wasson each with 3, Cienna Strommen 2, Mattea McColly and Teagan Erickson each with 1

Kills: Teagan Erickson 27, Paige Wasson 19, Kendall Scheffelmear 4, Mattea McColly and BaiLee McColly each with 3

Assists: Paige Wasson 26, Kennedy Simonson 14, Berkley Hillman 8

Digs: Kora LaBrie 15, Kendall Scheffelmear and Paige Wasson each with 11, BaiLee McColly 10

Blocks: Paige Wasson and Teagan Erickson each with 2, Mattea McColly and BaiLee McColly each with 1

Having won the consolation match, North Country moved into the championship match for another shot at Circle. The Wildcats bested the Mavericks in three sets to take the trophy in the noon match on Saturday.

NC 20 C 25

NC 20 C 25

NC 18 C 25

In this match, we handled the serving way better than Friday and were able to find a flow on offense. We were a little slow on defense once in a while, probably from playing back-to-back matches. We were so excited after the Froid/Lake match about making it to state that we came down off the high and really leveled out. Some kids were exhausted but still managed a way to be focused and scrappy. We didn't let as many balls touch the floor this time around when we played them. I also believe Circle got on a good playing streak this tournament. Regardless of taking second these kids really grew this weekend as a team. They battled through some adversity and came out on the other side as a team who weathered the storm together. We were one of three teams who had to stay overnight for the Tournament. Plentywood, Froid/Med Lake, Fairview, Savage, and Circle all got to stay in their own beds each night. I told the girls in between one of the sets against Circle this is why we travel and put in the long miles on the road for moments like these to know your dedication and determination to get better every single day is going to pay off and get you to the next level. 

Aces: Teagan Erickson 2, Paige Wasson, and Kendall Scheffelmear each with 1

Kills: Teagan Erickson 17, Paige Wasson 12, Kendall Scheffelmear 6 and Mattea McColly 2

Assists: Paige Wasson 20, Kennedy Simonson 8, Berkley Hillman 4

Digs: Kora LaBrie 10, Paige Wasson 8, BaiLee McColly 4

Blocks: Teagan Erickson 2, and Mattea McColly 1

We are over the top excited to be heading to Bozeman for the State Tournament. We have never experienced state volleyball as a Maverick team. Saco/Hinsdale have made a few trips together as a co-op to State and seen some great success at that level.

Now it is our turn as Mavericks to start our journey. We open with Belt Huskies on Thursday, Nov. 10, at 4 p.m. The All-Class State Volleyball Tournament will be held at Montana State University's Brick Breeden Fieldhouse in Bozeman.