BOZEMAN — The 2026 all-class state volleyball tournaments are under way at Brick Breeden Fieldhouse on the campus of Montana State University.
Action started with first-round matches Thursday at 10 a.m., noon, 2 p.m. and 4. Second-round matches are scheduled for 6 and 8.
Related: 2026 all-class state volleyball scores and pairings
MTN Sports' Alec Bofinger and Slim Kimmel are late to the party, but we've arrived and are settled in for the rest of the tournaments. We'll have updates throughout the rest of Thursday's happenings, as well as the action on Friday and Saturday. The undefeated semifinal matches are slated for 6 p.m. Friday, and the championships are scheduled to start at noon Saturday.
We'll have updates every 15 minutes or so, with the most-recent posts at the top, so refresh often.
5:23 p.m. | C-Falls extends lead over Central
Columbia Falls firmly has the defending champs on the ropes. The Wildkats now up 2-0 over Billings Central after a 25-21 win in the second set.
Gallatin has taken a 2-1 lead over Big Sky, and it looks like Shelby has a 2-1 lead on Plains.
Meanwhile, it'll be an intriguing pair of second-round matches in Class C. Belt and Manhattan Christian meet at 6 p.m., followed by Circle and D-G-S-G at 8. It's the third consecutive year the Wildcats and Bearcats have met in the second round. They also played each other in last season's Class C state basketball championship, which D-G-S-G in overtime.
5:11 p.m. | Billings Central down early to C-Falls
Circle closed out the sweep of Valley Christian, but we're now keep a close eye on the Class A court. Two-time reigning state champion Billings Central in a hole against Columbia Falls. The Wildkats won the first set and currently lead the second 15-13.
The Western A is already 3-0 on the day, with Frenchtown, Polson and Bigfork earning earlier wins.
Gallatin and Big Sky tied at 1-1 on the Class AA court, but the Raptors are pulling away in the third set. Shelby and Plains also tied at 1-1 in Class B.
4:57 p.m. | Circle right at home
Circle is becoming more and more familiar with Brick Breeden Fieldhouse. The Wildcats are the two-time defending champion on the Class C courts, and they're again the top seed from the East. They're off to a strong start today, building a two-set lead over Valley Christian.
4:37 p.m. | Setting the scene
We have a lot of storylines we'll be following throughout the week — Circle, Billings Central and Gallatin each chasing their third consecutive state titles among them — but we're going to start in Class AA. Belgrade is making its first-ever appearance at the State AA tournament at the Brick. The Panthers were a mainstay at state when they were in Class A but moved up to Class AA in 2019. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Class AA implemented a playoff format for all 15 teams.
Otherwise, this is the Panthers' first State AA experience, and they are making the most of it. As the East's fourth seed, they defeated West No. 1 Missoula Sentinel in the first round in four sets to advance to tonight's second round, where they'll get a shot at either Missoula Big Sky or Gallatin.
Also of note in Class AA's early action: Missoula Hellgate earned a five-set win over Great Falls CMR to advance the Knights to a second-round match against highly touted Bozeman High. Hellgate's win marked the first at state for a team from the Western AA since 2020.
The Eastern AA went a combined 20-0 in the first round from 2021 through 2025.
Here's Alec's video for the 5:30 newscasts:
