Heading into Friday, the Panther volleyball team had struggled to find consistency this season, but they found success when Lovell came to town. The Powell High School girls swept the Bulldogs 3-0 (25-21, 25-20, 25-20) to secure the No. 3 seed in the quadrant.

The Panthers (11-19 overall, 2-4 3A Northwest) and the Bulldogs (9-19-2 overall, 0-6 3A Northwest) battled early, before Lovell built a five-point lead and forced a timeout from PHS coach Lesli Spencer.

Out of that timeout the Panthers responded. Senior Ashlyn Shorb came to play on senior night, sneaking a set between the Bulldog lines and following it up with a kill to keep the Panthers in the match mid-set.

An ace by sophomore Addy Thorington helped the Panthers tie the match at 18, and another point forced a timeout by Lovell.

“Serving is key,” Spencer said. “That is one of the most important things that I am looking at because our serving was a lot better than it has been.”

The Panthers were able to maintain their momentum at the end of the set, as they finished the set on a 7-3 run to take it 25-21.

The second set began just like the first with the teams battling point for point early on. Then sophomore Kenzie Ratcliff took over.

Ratcliff began the year as a libero for the team before transitioning to an outside hitting role, but she still has the ability to control the game defensively.

“I struggle with it every game because she is so good in the back row and then she gets in the front row like that and I am like, I need her as a hitter, too,” Spencer said.

One particular play in the set showcased both of Ratcliff’s abilities. She dove and made a one-handed dig that was destined to hit the floor, then got up and turned around to get the winning kill to help the Panthers take the lead.

“When somebody is doing well it opens up the door for others to do well and it opens up the entire options for us, which is what we need,” Spencer said.

The Panthers scored five consecutive points to widen their lead to 19-12, but Lovell would not go away. The Bulldogs put up six unanswered points of their own to bring the score to 19-18 and force a timeout from Spencer.

The Panthers were ultimately able to remain in control, finishing with a 6-2 run to win the second set 25-20.

Throughout the season the Panthers have held multiple 2-0 leads slip away — and early in the third set, it appeared the match might swing in favor of the Bulldogs.

Lovell jumped out to a 10-4 lead and seemingly had the Panthers on their heels.

Coming out of a Powell timeout, however, the Panthers were able to respond. A string of Thorington serves helped the Panthers pull within 12-9, and then 14-12, which forced a Bulldog timeout.

The two teams again battled back and forth until Shorb made sure her senior night ended with a sweep; her block put the Panthers up for good at 21-20.

Spencer said the team has been working on blocking and adjusting to each unique hitter, which has allowed the team to improve its blocking in recent weeks. Another important addition to the rotation has been junior Mikayla Graham, who Spencer said has helped the back row and the team overall with her serving ability.

In winning the final four points of the third set, the Panthers were able to sweep the Bulldogs and carry some momentum going into this weekend’s Class 3A West conference tournament.

“Everyone was all in,” Spencer said. “It was good to see.”

CODY

The Panthers traveled to Cody (22-5 overall, 4-2 4A Northwest) earlier in the week to take on their rivals in a final non-conference matchup of the season. The first two sets were a battle back and forth early on before the Fillies were able to pull away and take the first set 25-18 and 25-16.

The third set would be all Fillies, as they dominated from start to finish 25-7 and swept the Panthers.

Spencer was not disappointed in the result however, as she believes Cody may be a top team in 4A at their upcoming conference and state tournament.

“They are going to be contenders I think,” Spencer said.

Powell experimented with different lineups during the match, incorporating Graham in the starting lineup and mixing junior Megan Jacobsen into the rotation.

REGIONALS

The Panthers will make the trip down to Lyman on Friday and Saturday to compete in the 3A West conference tournament. They’ll meet the No. 2 seed from the southwest, Mountain View (28-3 overall, 5-1 3A Southwest), in the first round at 2:30 p.m. on Friday.

The Panthers were swept by Mountain View at the western conference duals in Lovell two weeks ago, but competed in the final set, 27-25.

“I think the girls need to realize they can compete with these big teams,” Spencer said. “If they stay focused and keep doing what we need to do then they can compete and beat these teams.”

The regional competition is reverting back to the double elimination style that was in place before COVID-19.

If the Panthers win their first matchup, they will advance to the semifinals at 5:30 p.m. Friday, while a loss drops them into the consolation bracket at 10:30 a.m. Saturday. To advance to the state tournament, Powell will need to win two matchups before losing two.