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By ANDREW SIMONSON | Sports Editor

HELENA – The Helena Huskies have found a different gear in tournaments all season long, claiming championships in both the Smith Lake Classic and the Northridge Invitational, and that continued at the HeffStrong Tournament.

Helena finished in second place in Pool C to reach the HeffStrong Gold Bracket on Sept. 20 and 21 at the Finley Center in Hoover.

The Huskies came out victorious in two of their three matches in pool play, falling to the Class 7A Daphne Trojans before beating county foe Indian Springs and Class 7A’s Austin Black Bears. They would then lose to eventual runner-up Hazel Green in the first round of the Gold Bracket.

Helena fell behind in the first set of its tournament opener against Daphne and could not make up the difference, losing 25-11.

However, the Huskies rallied from there and made the second and third set much closer contests.

Helena went down to the wire in the second set and staved off the Trojans from being able to sweep the match by claiming the second set in extra points, winning back-to-back points to take the set 26-24.

The third set was similarly close, but this time around, it was Daphne which took the win by a score of 15-13.

The Huskies closed the opening night of the tournament with a matchup against Indian Springs, and they started out in front in the match before finishing off the win.

Helena built out a large lead in the first set and ended up pulling away for the 25-13 win to go up 1-0 in the match.

With the momentum now on their side, the Huskies fought off a more spirited effort from Indian Springs in the second set and swept the match thanks to a 25-20 win.

Helena’s first-set success continued in the first match of the day on Saturday, Sept. 21 as it faced Austin.

The Huskies got the better of the Black Bears in the opening frame of action and took the 25-19 win to take the lead in the match.

However, Austin mounted a response in the second set, and despite Helena’s efforts to make the set close, the Black Bears evened up the match with a 25-21 win.

With the winner taking a spot in the Gold Bracket, the Huskies stood tall and delivered, going on a big run to seal the win in the third set by a score of 15-5.

The win gave Helena second place in Pool C and booked its spot in the Gold Bracket against Hazel Green.

Facing a fellow Class 6A side, the Huskies slipped behind in the first set and fell to the Trojans 25-16.

Helena refused to go down without a fight and staved off elimination in the second set with one of the closest sets of the season.

The Huskies and Trojans ended up in a 24-24 tie in the second set and traded the next 14 points to keep the set alive.

Eventually, Helena won back-to-back points to outlast Hazel Green and win the set 33-31.

However, that momentum would not last for long as the Trojans pulled away to a commanding lead in the third set and took the 15-5 win to eliminate the Huskies.

Helena will hit the road to the site of its last tournament title, Northridge High School, for a tri-match with the Jags and Central Falcons of Tuscaloosa on Wednesday, Sept. 25.