Weekend Sports Preview Capsules

Football

Corvallis (0-1) at Libby (0-2)

Friday, Sept. 11, 7 p.m.

Corvallis Notes: The Southwestern A Blue Devils opened their season last week with a 54-6 loss in front of the home fans against Polson. The lone touchdown came late on a 7-yard TD run by Tyler Berner, who rushed for 33 yards on five carries. Corvallis reached the Class A playoffs last season but lost a lot to graduation.

Libby Notes: The Loggers will make their home debut on Friday night after opening the season with two difficult opponents on the road. Corvallis finished third in the Southwest last season and lost in the first round of the playoffs. “They lost a ton of kids,” LHS coach Neil Fuller said. “We’ve got a chance to develop a little confidence Friday night.” Fuller expected to have linebacker Dean Willey back in the lineup this week. Josiah Coker (fullback/linebacker), Tate Wilson (receiver) and Cole Lauer (lineman) are among those on the injured list.

Last Year: Corvallis defeated Libby, 41-29, with turnovers playing a role in the outcome. The team struggled with a lineup hit hard by the flu bug.

Last Week: Frenchtown 52, Libby 0; Polson 54, Corvallis 6.

Next Week: Sept. 18, Hamilton at Libby, 7 p.m.

Troy (0-0, 1-0) at Mission (0-0, 0-1)

Friday, Sept. 11, 7 p.m.

Troy Notes: The Trojans had a successful season debut last week in a 42-6 victory over Darby. Troy showed that it could be effective with both the pass and run. QB Mike Ormiston appears to have good hands among his receiving corps and Jake Alexander can make the tough yards with the threat of breaking off a long one. “Last year it was a dogfight,” Troy coach Rich McElmurry said. “We beat them convincingly but it was a fight to the end.”

Mission Notes: The Bulldogs opened the season with a 41-7 loss at the hands of Boulder. Mission struggled early and trailed 29-0 by halftime. The Bulldogs produced no points with their offense. The lone team score came on an 80-yard kickoff return in the fourth quarter.

Last Year: Troy’s defense came up big in a 20-12 victory over the Bulldogs.

Last Week: Troy 42, Darby 6; Boulder 41, Mission 7.

Next Week: Sept. 18, Eureka at Troy, 7 p.m.

Volleyball

Libby (1-0) at Anaconda Tip-Off Tourney

Friday-Saturday, Sept. 11-12

Libby Notes: The Loggers didn’t see any action last weekend but did get on the court Tuesday with a sweep at Eureka. Jackie Mee continues to be in top form to give fits to the opposition and the Loggers have a capable supporting cast. Alysha Martin, Alex Kulbeck and Evi Cernick were a few of the standouts in the victory over the Lions. The team will get a good workout on Friday and Saturday with seven opponents in Anaconda.

Tournament Notes: The Anaconda Tip-Off Tourney features Northwestern A and Southwestern A teams squaring off against one another. The one exception is Bigfork, who will compete even though reclassified to Class B over the offseason. Libby will play six pool play matches on Friday against Dillon (9 a.m.), Frenchtown (11 a.m.), Hamilton (1 p.m.), Stevensville (3 p.m.) and Anaconda (5 p.m.) and Saturday against Corvallis (10 a.m.). Each match consists of two games to 25 points. A medal round follows Saturday afternoon with seedings based on pool play records.

Recent Matches: Sept. 8, Libby def. Eureka, 25-16, 25-14, 25-22.

Next Week: Sept. 17, Libby at Whitefish; Sept. 19, Libby at Bonners Ferry, idaho

Troy (0-3) vs. Florence at Eureka

Saturday, Sept. 12, noon

Troy Notes: The Lady Trojans will try to put three straight losses behind them in this meeting against Florence. Troy has a promising lineup that needs more matches to put it all together. Head coach Sandra Jansma was confident heading into the season and there is no reason to not think otherwise.

Florence Notes: The Falcons appear to have a capable team this season. Among their victories so far was a 3-0 sweep over Darby. Odessa Conley looks like she’s tough at the net with kills and blocks. Makenzie Bauck does the setting.

Last Year: Florence outlasted Troy, 23-25, 25-20, 25-18, 25-13, during the Trojans’ homecoming.

Recent Results: Sept. 3, Mission def. Troy, 20-25, 25-19, 25-12, 25-15; Sept. 4, Eureka def. Troy, 23-25, 25-22, 25-20, 25-18; Sept. 8, Bigfork def. Troy, 25-8, 25-9, 25-7.

Next Week: Sept. 19, Troy at Valley Christian; Sept. 19, Troy at Loyola

Boys Soccer

Libby (0-0, 2-1) at C. Falls (0-0, 0-3)

Saturday, Sept. 12, 11 a.m.

Libby Notes: The Loggers had to endure a tough loss in Troy last weekend to Livingston but are expected to bounce back against Columbia Falls on Saturday. Libby has a variety of scoring threats with Nick Reny (3 goals, 2 assists), Cree Maloney (2 g, 1 a), Crawford Dinning (2 g, 1 a) and Edson Vences (1 g).

Columbia Falls Notes: Three matches into the season, Columbia Falls had not only failed to win a game but had failed to score a goal. Last week, the team dropped games to Livingston, 6-0, and Belgrade, 1-0. Libby played those same two teams and lost to Livingston, 2-1, on a last-second shot and beat Belgrade, 3-1.

Last Year: In the first meeting between the two schools, Libby took a 2-0 victory at Columbia Falls. Scott Harlow scored a goal, the Bulldogs hit one into their own net and Lewis Brossman got the shutout.

Last Week: Sept. 4, Libby 3, Belgrade 1; Sept. 5, Livingston 2, Libby 1.

Next Week: Sept. 17, Libby at Bigfork; Sept. 19, Libby at Polson

Girls Soccer

Libby (0-0, 2-0) at C. Falls (1-0, 2-1)

Saturday, Sept. 12, 11 a.m.

Libby Notes: The Lady Loggers are ready to take on another quality opponent in Columbia Falls following back-to-back wins to open the season. Libby has been forced to deal with a few nagging injuries but played well with Audra Poppen in goal and a tough back-line defense. Anna Valentine (2 goals, 3 assists) and Jaime Gilden (3 g) have been the top point scorers so far this season. Last week, Gilden had the hat trick vs. Belgrade.

Columbia Falls Notes: Last week, Columbia Falls won a close one over Livingston, 2-1, and dropped a close one to Belgrade, 3-2. The Loggers defeated both of those same opponents last week. MacKenzie Kizer and McKenzie Reeve have been the top scoring threats so far this season with three goals apiece.

Last Year: In the meeting at Columbia Falls, the Lady Loggers posted a 4-0 victory with two goals apiece by Brittany Martin and Anna Valentine.

Last Week: Sept. 4, Libby 5, Belgrade 1; Sept. 5, Libby 1, Livingston 0.

Next Week: Sept. 17, Libby at Bigfork; Sept. 19, Libby at Polson

— Compiled by Brad Fuqua, The Western News