Hillcrest, Bear Lake, Butte County, take top seeds into state tournaments, while Madison looks for another title
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EAST IDAHO – State volleyball tournaments take place all around the state beginning Thursday, with the Mountain America Center in Idaho Falls hosting 4A and 3A festivities.
The 6A and 5A tournaments will be played in the Boise area and 2A and 1A teams are headed north.
The tournaments are Thursday through Saturday.
Here’s a look at matchups for area teams.
6A
At Capital HS
Powerhouse Skyview is the top seed but three-time champion Madison is at the bottom of the bracket at No. 2.
Madison had to beat Skyview twice at last year’s state tournament to win the title.
The Bobcats (32-0) take on No. 7 Eagle in the opener.
Rigby (31-8) is seeded fifth and will play No. 4 Coeur d’Alene.
5A
At Timberline HS
Hillcrest earned the No. 1 seed after winning a tough district tournament.
The Knights (25-6) finished third in the regular season, but beat Idaho Falls, and then beat Shelley twice to clinch the berth.
Shelley (23-9) won the regular season and is the No. 2 seed in the state bracket.
The Russets will face No. 7 Twin Falls, the defending state champion, in the opener.
Pocatello lost to Moscow in the state play-in game this past weekend.
4A
At Mountain America Center, Idaho Falls
Defending state champion Bear Lake is the top seed, with two other eastern teams earning berths.
The Bears (33-3) will play No. 8 Timberlake in the tournament opener.
Preston (22-9) is seeded fourth and plays No. 5 Fruitland.
Sugar-Salem (18-15) is back in the state tournament after missing the cut the past three years. The Diggers, seeded No. 6, will play No. 3 Cole Valley.
3A
At Mountain America Center, Idaho Falls
Malad (26-9) is the South East Idaho Conference champion and is the No. 3 seed.
The Dragons face No. 6 Melba on Thursday in a rematch of last year’s championship game, that was won by Melba.
Firth (20-7) the Nuclear Conference champion, is in as a No. 7 seed and plays No. 2 Kellogg in its opener, while West Side is No. 8 and takes on No. 1 Ambrose.
2A
At Post Falls HS
Defending state champion Butte County had to win a play-in game over Victory Charter this past weekend just to qualify for the state tournament, and is the No. 1 seed.
The Pirates (36-2) play Liberty Christian in the tournament opener.
1A
At Coeur d’Alene HS
The Rocky Mountain Conference has three teams in the bracket, with No. 4 Rockland (24-9) playing No. 5 Mackay (19-7) in the tournament opener.
Rockland finished third at last season’s state tournament.
Leadore (21-7) is seeded sixth and takes on No. 3 Salmon River.
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