Hi-Line Volleyball Roundup: Area teams get the volleyball season underway

The high school volleyball season got started on Friday night, and with an important Northern C match no less.

Right off the bat, two of the top teams in the Northern C squared off in Chinook when the Sugarbeeters played host to the Fort Benton Longhorns.

And it was Fort Benton which came away with a big early season victory, besting Chinook by scores of 25-17, 25-21, 24-26 and 25-23.

McKenzie Clark had eight kills and Leah Gannon added four aces, while Maddie Thompson had 19 digs for the Longhorns. Kourtney Hanson had nine kills and two blocks, while Sierra Swank had 14 digs and 13 assists for the Sugarbeeters.

Other matches that took place Friday night included Big Sandy taking on Centerville, but no other scores were reported.

Saturday's action shifted to preseason tournaments, including big one's in Belt, Malta and Sunburst.

At the Belt Invitational, North Star finished fourth after beating Centerville in the tournament by scores of 25-17 and 25-15. The Knights went 2-2 in pool play. Big Sandy was also on hand in Belt, and the Pioneers lost to Power by scores of 25-14 and 25-18 in bracket play. In pool play, the Pioneers also went 2-2. Belt, perhaps the strongest team in the Northern C, went on to win its own tournament, defeating Harlowtown 25-20 and 25-14 in the championship match.

At the Sunburst Showcase, the Chester-Joplin-Inverness Hawks got their season started the right way by making it all the way to the championship match. The Hawks fell to Northern C power Great Falls Central by scores of 25-10 and 25-19, but the strong showing by the Hawks included going 2-1 in pool play, beating Box Elder in the quarterfinals and Valier in the semifinals. Box Elder went 1-2 in pool play, while Fort Benton went 2-1 and reached the semifinals before falling to GFCC.

No results were reported from the annual Malta Invite, which featured local teams Chinook, Rocky Boy, Harlem.

Friday

Fort Benton def. Chinook

25-17, 25-21, 24-26, 25-23

Fort Benton: Kills 38 (M. Clark na), Aces 12 (L. Gannon na), Digs 56 (M. Thompson na), Blocks 1 (N. Axtman), Assists 28 (A. Evans na)

Chinook: Kills 21 (Kourtney Hanson 9), Aces 5 (Sierra Swank 3), Digs 57 (Swank 14), Blocks 4 (Hanson 2), Assists 15 (Swank 13)

Saturday

Belt Invitational

North Star Pool Play

Belt def, North Star 25-13, 25-20; North Star def. Roy-Winifred 25-22, 25-19; North Star def. Power 15-13, 13-25; Reedpoint def. North Star 25-20, 25-20.

Big Sandy Pool play

Big Sandy def. Centerville 12-25, 25-20; Harlowtown def. Big Sandy 25-6, 25-9; DGS def. Big Sandy 25-14, 25-16; Big Sandy def. Belt JV 25-17, 25-20.

7th Annual Sunburst Showcase

Pool A: Valier def. Heart Butte 25-6, 25-21; Great Falls Central def. Valier 25-13, 25-14; Great Falls Central def. Heart Butte 25-10, 25-10; Valier def. Box Elder 25-12, 21-25, total points; Great Falls Central def. Box Elder 25-18, 25-19; Box Elder def. Heart Butte 22-25, 25-21, total points.

Pool B: CJI def. Sunburst 25-11, 25-13; Fort Benton def. Sunburst 25-8, 25-14; CJI def. Augusta 25-18, 25-13; Fort Benton def. Augusta 25-10, 25-8; Fort Benton def. CJI 25-20, 25-23; Augusta def. Sunburst 25-23, 25-16.

Quarterfinals: Great Falls Central def. Sunburst 25-8, 25-6; CJI def. Box Elder 21-25, 25-28, total points; Valier def. Augusta 25-16, 17-25, 8-3, on points; Fort Benton def. Heart Butte 25-11, 25-8 .; Semifinals: Great Falls Central def. Fort Benton 25-17, 28-26; CJI def. Valier 25-19, 25-21 .; Championship: Great Falls Central def. CJI 25-10, 25-19.