Gillette’s Joelie Spelts Will Play Volleyball for the Bobcats

Thunder Basin High School senior Joelie Spelts has signed her National Letter of Intent to play volleyball at Montana State University.

Spelts is the third Division I signee for volleyball from Wyoming in the Class of 2023.

The 6-3 outside and middle hitter was chosen to the AVCA (American Volleyball Coaches Association) High School All-Region team for Region 8. She was the only player selected from Wyoming. Region 8 consists of Wyoming, Colorado, Kansas, New Mexico, and Utah.

As a senior, Joelie was named the co-Player of the Year in Class 4A for the 2022 season. She helped the Bolts to a 35-7 record and an appearance at the 4A volleyball state tournament.

Spelts finished the season with 793 kills, the fifth-most in the nation as of the publishing of this article. She had a .285 hitting percentage and compiled 58 total blocks. Spelts added 431 digs and 53 service aces.

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Joelie was a three-time all-state and all-conference selection by the coaches in Class 4A. She was the 2022 East Region Player of the Year and was named to the East Regional All-Tournament team. Spelts had a career-high 34 kills in a five-set loss to Laramie at the state tournament in a match for third place.

In her career, Spelts had 1,502 kills and 310 blocks. She played back row for the first time in the fall 2022 season and had a serve-receive mark of 2.0. Joelie finished with 522 digs and added 78 service aces over three seasons.

Spelts is also a two-time all-state basketball player at Thunder Basin High School. She has helped the Bolts to the 4A basketball state tournament during both her sophomore and junior seasons. Thunder Basin placed third in 2022 and won the consolation bracket in 2021.

Montana State has a 13-15 overall record in the 2022 season. The Bobcats went 9-7 in conference matches. They compete in the Big Sky Conference.