Taking on 3A competition in the annual Sandy Jebens Invitational in Rawlins, the Powell High School volleyball team put together its best weekend of the season, going 5-1 and finishing second in the gold bracket.

Starting with pool play on Friday the Panthers (11-8) opened with a pair of eastern conference teams. Pool play in the tournament was first to 21 and only two sets were played regardless of finding a winner. Bracket play on Saturday was best of three, first to 21 in the first two sets and first to 15 in the third set and teams must win by two.

Powell started with Tongue River (10-5-1) as the Panthers earned two very close set wins with victories of 21-20 and 21-19.

The Panthers followed that up with another victory over a top east team, as they defeated Torrington (10-5-1) in consecutive sets 21-15.

“I love playing the east teams because watching film only tells you so much. You don’t really know how you match up until you’re on the court with them,” coach Anna Flitner said. “It’s so exciting that 3A for the most part is wide open right now. Seeing the rankings change every week has been really fun to watch too.”

Ending pool play the Panthers took on a 3A West team in Lyman (6-13) as Powell took the first set 21-17 and the second 21-18.

Winning all three matches meant the Panthers were the top qualifier from their pool on Saturday, and they took on another east team to begin the gold bracket.

In the quarterfinals against Wheatland (8-8-1), the Panthers fell in the first set 21-10 before rallying for a 21-18 second set win and a 15-10 third set win.

“There was definitely improvement. I was probably most proud of the girls for not backing down and just fighting through those close matches,” Flitner said. “Our serve-receive is honestly one of our biggest strengths right now, which is huge for us. Our serving has gotten a lot tougher too, so now we’re just working on cutting down a few of those errors.”

In the semifinals the Panthers took on one final 3A East team, Glenrock (5-11-1).

Powell won both sets, holding on 21-18 and 21-19.

That meant the Panthers advanced to the championship game, taking on local rival Lovell (13-1), as Powell got an early look at the defending 3A champions.

“Tough competition is always helpful, no matter how the score turns out,” Flitner said.

The Panthers started with a close set one victory, taking it 22-20.

Lovell answered with a 21-9 second set win and, in a close third, just edges Powell 15-13.

“Honestly, that Lovell match was the most fun match we’ve played all year. They’re the defending champs and have incredible athletes, but our girls really battled with them. Taking a set off them gave us a huge boost of confidence, and we want to keep building on that momentum this week.”

CONFERENCE OPENERS

The Panthers have now wrapped up their tournament schedule for the regular season, and begin the conference season this week.

“We played some of our best volleyball against top teams like Lovell, and it was great for the girls to realize they can truly play with anyone in 3A,” Flitner said. “Now, we just need to focus on bringing that same high level of energy regardless of the team we are playing, rather than matching what is happening on the other side of the net. I also think we improved at letting other teams have their point, and then we were able to move on to the next ball rather than let it completely deflate us and it turn into a run.”

Powell starts with a road trip to Worland today (Tuesday) to take on the Warriors (6-4-2) at 6 p.m.

The Panthers then stay in Powell for the first time this season, hosting Lander (10-8) in their home opener at 6 p.m. on Thursday.

With the new conference layout, the Tigers have moved to the 3A Northwest quadrant while Rawlins has shifted into the 3A Southwest quadrant.

“I just want us to keep executing the basics well … We’re a really gritty group that can wear teams down by keeping them out of system, and our defense was awesome this weekend,” Flitner said. “Looking at Lander and Worland, they historically have put up a pretty big block, so we’ll be practicing seeing hands, hitting around them and making smart shot choices.”