Two more matches proved to be a learning experience for the Powell Panther volleyball team, as the Panthers fell in a difficult five set conference match at Lovell on Thursday before defeating Thermopolis 3-1 at home on Saturday.

LOVELL 3, POWELL 2

Making the short trip on Thursday the Panthers (14-10-1 overall, 0-3 3A West) matched up with the Bulldogs (16-3-2 overall, 2-1 3A West) in a key conference matchup.

The two teams exchanged point for point at the start, tied at eight early.

Powell started pulling away midway through the set, making it 15-12 on an Autumn Kidd kill and then forcing a timeout from the hosts after another point leading 16-12.

Lovell battled back late with a good kill and hits out by the Panthers to cut the lead to 21-19 and force a Powell timeout.

The Panthers held off the charge, holding on for a 25-22 first set win capped off by a Kindyle Floy kill.

Everything that went right in the first set did not follow in the second.

Improved serving by the Bulldogs helped the hosts to a 10-5 lead, as Lovell continued to take advantage of Powell errors to build a double digit lead at 16-6.

That lead held as the Bulldogs earned the 25-15 win.

Lovell again started strong in the third before the Panthers battled back, as a Kaedenze Carter kill kept the Panthers close, trailing 13-10.

Powell capped the rally by tying the match at 13 on an Ava Brewer kill, while another Carter kill gave the Panthers the lead.

That lead held until 17-15 when the Bulldogs called a timeout.

Powell held on late behind a strong performance by Hali Hancock at the net, earning a 25-19 win after the Bulldogs served into the net to give Powell a 2-1 set lead.

“We saw some really great moments against Lovell. I think our communication started to break down at times and Lovell exposed some of our weaknesses, but overall I was proud of how they battled against a top team in the state,” coach Anna Flitner said.

Once again Powell’s momentum did not carry, as Lovell built a 12-6 lead and forced a Powell timeout, as the Bulldogs cruised through the fourth set with a 25-10 win.

In the tiebreaking fifth set, the two teams were tied at two before the Bulldogs pulled ahead for good.

Lovell scored the final 13 points of the match, as Powell lost the final set 15-2.

“I think finding ways to improve our consistency will be key moving forward,” Flitner said. “We have gotten into a bit of a habit of having some pretty big swings in performance but I think we can improve upon that this week as we head into conference duals. I would also like to see our consistency hitting improve as well, and our ability to put the ball away in pressure situations.”

Carter led Powell with 14 kills and 29 digs, Leah Graham led with 20 assists, Hancock led with four blocks, two solo, and Maddie Valdez had the team lead with two aces.

Ava Teten added 10 digs as the other Panther in double figures.

POWELL 3, THERMOPOLIS 1

After the 0-3 start to conference play the Panthers returned home on Saturday to reset against the 2A Bobcats (4-16 overall, 0-3 2A Northwest).

Both teams started strong, going point for point until the Panthers broke away in the middle of the set.

After Powell led 13-11, an extended run by the hosts helped put the game away, as Powell finished on a 12-2 run to earn the 25-13 first set win.

Again, things did not go well in the second set for the Panthers.

Thermopolis jumped out to a 5-2 lead and forced an early Powell timeout, as the visitors extended that advantage to 14-4 before a second Panther timeout.

The Bobcats ran away with the second set earning a 25-12 win, sending the Panthers to another second set loss, as the Panthers haven’t won a second set since Sept. 16 at Worland.

“I’m not entirely sure what happens. What I am seeing from the bench is that we start to make a few errors hitting at the start of the second set and our confidence declines until our overall performance is affected,” Flitner said. “That is going to be part of our mental health Monday this week is working through that second set slump and working through some drills that might help us practice that.”

Powell started better in the third, and held a 14-11 lead midway through after Carter’s kill was deflected out by the Thermopolis block.

Thermopolis didn’t go away, as the visitors took the lead back late at 20-19 after two hits out by the Panthers, forcing a Powell timeout.

Powell regained the lead after hits out by the Bobcats at 23-21 and finished with a block to take the third set 25-21.

In the fourth set the Panthers fell behind early and trailed through the midway point, down by as many as 16-10.

Powell brought it back to 16-15 before forcing a Thermopolis timeout, and Powell eventually took the lead 17-16 on a hit out by the Bobcats.

The two teams exchanged the lead until Powell took it back for good on a hit that was unable to be dug by the Bobcats at 23-22, and the Panthers took the 25-22 win after a four hit call against the Bobcats.

“We talked at the beginning of the set that we were going to upset that pattern that had been happening lately so I was happy that we were able to follow through with that,” Flitner said. “They did a great job of pushing through some errors during that fourth set.”

Carter led with 21 kills and 18 digs, Floy added 10 kills and 16 digs, Graham had 39 assists, Teten added 14 digs and tied for the team lead with two aces alongside Graham and Valdez, while Brewer led with 2.5 blocks, one solo.

CONFERENCE DUALS

Powell now heads on the road for one of the most important weekends of the season, as the Panthers head to Worland on Friday and Saturday to take part in the 3A West Conference Duals.

That gives the Panthers an opportunity to take on all four of the teams from the southwestern portion of the 3A West, matching up with Mountain View (14-10-1 overall, 3-0 3A West), Lyman (14-10-1, 1-2), Pinedale (15-8-1, 2-1) and Lander (8-17, 0-4) on Friday and Saturday.

“I am hoping that we can start to put some things together and continue to improve our own performance,” Flitner said. “If we look at the rankings right now, four of the top five ranked teams in the state for 3A are in our conference/region, so I think it’s crucial for us to get as good of a seed as possible. Regionals are going to be tough on this side and we have to do what we can to put ourselves in the best position we can.”

LOVELL 3, POWELL 2

(22-25, 25-15, 19-25, 25-10, 15-2)

Total blocks then solo blocks in ()

Kills — Kaedenze Carter 14, Hali Hancock 7, Ava Brewer 6, Kindyle Floy 5, Autumn Kidd 1, Leah Graham 1, Peyton Ott 1

Assists — Leah Graham 20, Kindyle Floy 3, Abigail Visocky 1

Digs — Kaedenze Carter 29, Ava Teten 10, Kindyle Floy 9, Leah Graham 7, Abigail Visocky 5, Hali Hancock 2, Autumn Kidd 1, Maddie Valdez 1

Blocks — Hali Hancock 4 (2), Ava Brewer 2.5, Autumn Kidd 1.5, Kaedenze Carter 1, Leah Graham .5

Aces — Maddie Valdez 2, Kaedenze Carter 1, Leah Graham 1

POWELL 3, THERMOPOLIS 1

(25-13, 12-25, 25-21, 25-22)

Kills — Kaedenze Carter 21, Kindyle Floy 10, Autumn Kidd 5, Ava Brewer 5, Hali Hancock 5, Leah Graham 4

Assists — Leah Graham 39, Kindyle Floy 2, Maddie Valdez 2, Kaedenze Carter 1, Abigail Visocky 1, Ava Teten 1

Digs — Kaedenze Carter 18, Kindyle Floy 16, Ava Teten 14, Leah Graham 9, Ava Brewer 6, Abigail Visocky 5, Maddie Valdez 3, Autumn Kidd 1, Hali Hancock 1

Blocks — Ava Brewer 2.5 (1), Hali Hancock 1.5, Autumn Kidd 1, Leah Graham 1

Aces — Ava Teten 2, Leah Graham 2, Maddie Valdez 2, Abigail Visocky 1