Montana State University
IUPUI
Bobcat Spikers Head To Bluegrass Country
9/4/2013 4:21:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
With four matches under its belt, the 2013 Montana State volleyball team will head to its second tournament of the non-conference season when it travels to Morehead, Ky., for the MSU/Comfort Inn and Suites Invitational.
CLICK HERE FOR THIS WEEK'S RELEASE (pdf)
NEXT UP:
With four matches under its belt, the 2013 Montana State volleyball team will head to its second tournament of the non-conference season when it travels to Morehead, Ky., for the MSU/Comfort Inn and Suites Invitational. The Bobcats will open play against IUPUI on Friday, Sept. 6 at 2:30 p.m. (MST). Montana State will conclude action on Saturday against Saint Louis at 9 a.m., and Morehead State at 5 p.m. Live stats for all matches this weekend is available at www.msueagles.com.
THE TOURNAMENT FIELD:
IUPUI is 1-2 after its first weekend of play. The Jaguars hosted the Hampton Inn Invitational, where it dropped 3-2 decisions to Illinois State and VCU, before sweeping Florida Gulf Coast 3-0. IUPUI was paced in the three matches by Moriah Fair, who averaged 4.08 kills and 2.23 digs per set. Saint Louis is also 1-2 on the season. The Billikens hosted the Marcia E. Hamilton Classic last weekend. SLU dropped 3-0 decisions to Auburn and No. 13 Nebraska, and defeated Louisiana-Monroe 3-1. Saint Louis was led in the opening weekend by Mallory Dillon, who averaged 4.00 kills and 2.40 digs per set. Morehead State went 1-2 at the Cincinnati Tournament last weekend in the Queen City. The Eagles dropped a 3-2 decision to Tennessee and a 3-1 contest to Butler, before rebounding with a 3-1 win over the Bearcats. Morehead State was led in the tournament by Aryn Bohannon and Courtney Smith, who each averaged 2.77 kills.
ABOUT THE BOBCATS:
The Montana State volleyball opened its 2013 season going 1-3 at the UniWyo Wyoming Invitational over the weekend in Laramie. On Friday, the Bobcats dropped a 3-0 decision to Idaho and a 3-1 contest to Drake. Following its sluggish start, MSU rebounded on Saturday with a 3-2 victory over Stetson, followed by a hard-fought 27-29, 23-25, 27-25, 24-26 setback to Wyoming. Freshman Kennadie Clute was named to the all-tournament team after averaging 4.12 kills per set, including 25 kills in MSU's win over the Hatters. Also helping the team offensively were freshman Loni Kreun and senior middle blocker Megan Spofford.
FAB FROSH, PART I:
Kennadie Clute, a 6-0 outside hitter from Spokane, had an outstanding rookie debut for the Bobcats at the Wyoming Invitational last weekend in Laramie. The freshman averaged 4.31 kills and 2.19 digs per set. In addition, she had one of the highest kill outputs ever recorded by a MSU frosh as she notched 25 kills in Montana State's win over Stetson. Clute was in double-figure kills in all four matches and currently ranks second in the Big Sky Conference. She also had six aces and is ranked seventh in the league. Clute notched a two double-doubles on the weekend and recorded 13 digs against Drake.
FAB FROSH, PART II:
Freshman Anna Sykora also had a strong debut in the Blue and Gold. The 5-11 setter from Rapid City, SD, dished out 196 assists, averaging 12.25 assists per set. Sykora's assist average is currently the top mark in the Big Sky Conference. She posted a weekend-high 60 assists in MSU's loss to Wyoming. In addition, Sykora matched Clute with two doube-doubles on the weekend. On the weekend, she averaged 2.12 digs per set.
FAB FROSH, PART III:
Slightly overshadowed by fellow outside hitter Kennadie Clute, Loni Kreun posted a strong start to the season at Wyoming. The 6-0 native of Davis, Calif., averaged 4.12 kills per game, which is currently the third best mark in the Big Sky. Kreun notched a weekend-high 22 kills in MSU's loss to Wyoming. She had one double-double over the four matches with 15 kills and 15 digs against Drake.
SPUDTASTIC:
Senior Megan Spofford had her best weekend as a Bobcat. Prior to the Wyoming Tournament, the native of Idaho Falls, Idaho, had played in 33 sets with 12 kills and 15 blocks over the past three years. Last weekend, she played in 14 sets with 23 kills and 13 blocks.
