The Powell High School volleyball team opened 3A West Conference play 2-0, starting with a 3-1 win at Worland on Tuesday before defeating Lander at home 3-2 on Thursday.

POWELL 3, WORLAND 1

Heading on the road Thursday the Panthers (13-8 overall, 2-0 3A West) went into a hostile environment against the Warriors (6-5-2 overall, 0-1 3A West).

That environment led to the hosts taking the opening set, as Powell fell 25-20.

“Playing in Worland was definitely a transition for us after tournament season. Tournaments are never really that loud and don’t have massive crowds, so it took us a little time to adjust and learn how to communicate loudly enough to be effective,” coach Anna Flitner said. “Throw in some normal first conference match nerves, and it was a slow start, but I was super proud of how the girls adapted and fought back.”

Close sets were a constant theme throughout the evening, as the Panthers won the second set 25-22 and had the biggest set win of the night 25-19 in the third.

Worland nearly sent it to a fifth set, leading 24-22, before the Panthers rallied and scored four straight to take the win 26-24.

“I love how this team fights back. No matter what kind of deficit we find ourselves in,” Flitner said. “That mental toughness is a huge improvement from last year, and seeing them lock in at 24 to close it out showed a lot of grit and determination.”

POWELL 3, LANDER 2

Opening the home slate for the first time this season the Panthers took on the Tigers (11-10 overall, 0-2 3A West).

The Panthers opened the first set strong, earning the advantage early before closing out with a 25-20 win.

“I felt really great about our start against Lander. We played our game right out of the gate and did a great job keeping them out of system,” Flitner said.

Unfortunately that start did not continue, as Lander took advantage of some mistakes by the Panthers in the second and third sets and took wins of 25-20 and 25-18 to take a 2-1 lead.

“In the second and third sets, we got in our own way a bit. We let a few unforced errors snowball into big runs for them,” Flitner said. “When we don’t communicate well and end up sending over free balls, Lander’s middles can really swing and they’re tough to defend. We just have to learn to shake off our mistakes quickly and keep playing aggressive instead of playing cautious.”

Powell found a way to pull out a fourth set 25-23, before a return to strong play in the fifth set saw the Panthers build a 5-0 lead and never look back in a 15-6 win.

“Starting off conference play 2-0 is huge for us. I’m really proud of their resilience to pull out that fifth set, and I’m just excited to keep building on the momentum that we’ve created,” Flitner said.

NONCONFERENCE WEEK

The Panthers now have a week off from conference action, and will stay in Park County for both contests.

Powell starts with an out-of-state opponent at home on Tuesday, welcoming in Red Lodge (5-8) at 6 p.m.

The Panthers then have the rest of the week off before heading on the road Saturday at 1 p.m. for a rivalry matchup against the 4A Cody Fillies (12-6).

“It’ll be nice to break up conference play a little bit this week. We haven’t seen Red Lodge or Cody yet this year, so I’m excited for the challenge,” Flitner said. “We might also test out a new lineup variation to see how it fits us and gives us different looks moving forward.”