MISSOULA- Hellgate dropped its second to last crosstown game of the 2023 season 3 sets to 1 to Big Sky on Tuesday evening.
The Knights (1-7; 2-16) quickly ran into trouble as they lost back-to-back sets to open up the match. They managed to take the third set, before eventually losing a bit of steam as Big Sky (2-6; 3-15) would pull away in set 4 to take the match (3-1) on Hellgate’s court.
“After the game we were upset,” said junior libero Morgan Meissner. “But the team played super well together, and we did a good job of battling to the end while having a good mindset throughout the entire game.”
Meissner, along with a large group of 2025 graduates, were a big part of last year’s addition to the Knight’s volleyball team that would heat up at the Divisionals tournament in Missoula. Hellgate would take second in the west, entering play at the state tournament before graduating 10 seniors, including the 2023 Western AA Player of the Year Camille Sherrill, who currently competes collegiately for Colorado College.
One key piece of Hellgate’s success this year is found in returning honorable mention All-Conference setter, Moana Massey. Racking up 27 assists and 4 kills in the crosstown contest, Massey has continued to make a name for herself after an impressive Sophomore campaign.
Hellgate opened up their match to the Eagles with a back-and-forth battle that saw an 18-14 Big Sky lead to open up the first timeout of the night. The Knight’s would eventually grab their first of four 20+ point sets, but not before the Eagles racked up 6 unanswered points to come away with the first victory of the night.
Set two saw another point-for-point battle that was knotted up at eight points apiece, before Big Sky jumped to a quick 15-11 point lead to force a Hellgate timeout.
“In set two during the first timeout we talked about making smart plays, and swinging through the ball instead of half guessing it,” said Meissner. “We talked about having more confidence with the front row approaching, and being more agile on the defensive side, as well as better timing with our blocking.”
The Knights then came out of that timeout scoring six unanswered points, including a Meissner ace, that forced a Big Sky timeout. But the Eagles refused to go down without a fight, as they would re-take the lead with five straight kills to take the set 25-22, and edge closer to a win with a 2-0 start to the match.
Hellgate then came out firing to begin set three, as they battled to an 8-2 lead, which saw juniors Braydie Neil and Sophia Petrino lighting up the stats sheet with multiple kills each. The Eagles quickly answered back, scoring four in a row and matching the Knights with 13 apiece. Hellgate continued the see-saw battle with four in a row of their own to light up the scoreboard 17-13 and force another Big Sky timeout.
The Knights would eventually pull away to take the set 25-23 and stay alive for another round.
“All through the third set we had a positive mindset,” said Meissner. “We had really good communication, and lots of confidence as we all worked together which led to the win.”
The final set of the night saw both Neil and Petrino rack up 4 kills apiece, while Massey picked up 6 assists en-route to Hellgate scoring 21 points, but not before the Eagles caught on fire and came back with 25 of their own to take the set, and the match 3-1.
“The team throughout the summer has been working together and growing as a team,” explained Meissner. “We are working hard and I believe that we will be able to win a few more games this season as we continue to grow.”
Final stats for the Knights included Massey’s 4 kills; 27 assists, Neil’s 11 kills; 1 assist, Petrino’s 16 kills; 1 assist, and Meissner’s team lead in digs.
Hellgate wraps up the regular season this month with two final home games against Helena High (10/17), and Senior night against Flathead (10/26). Come out and support these awesome athletes as they finish their season strong!
