Cats Soar Past Eagles

Thursday, November 9

BOZEMAN

7 p.m.

Montana State University

10-14, 6-9BSC

Eastern Washington

7-17, 4-11BSC

Eastern Washington

Montana State

Sophomore libero Allyssa Rizzo

Photo by: Andrew Pedersen

11/9/2017 10:12:00 PM | Women's Volleyball

Box Score

By: Tom Schulz

Montana State middle blockers Kiana Black and Kelsie White paved the way for the Bobcats combining for 19 kills, a .444 attack mark and seven blocks to guide MSU to a straight set 25-22, 25-19, 25-23 victory over Eastern Washington, Thursday night in Shroyer Gym.

The win keeps Montana State's postseason hopes alive heading into its final match against Idaho on Saturday night.

"It's going to be a good night for us when both of our middles get going," said MSU head coach Daniel Jones. "It was good to see consistency across the entire board. That's always the challenge. The thing that most impressed me about the middles was that they were always driving hard the entire time. We challenged them to transition hard and drive hard and that really has an impact on the rest of the game. When we do that it opens it up for everyone else."

Montana State (10-14, 6-9) jumped out to an early 13-9 advantage in the opening set following an Eastern Washington (7-17, 4-11) service error. The Eagles eventually tied the frame at 20-all on an MSU attack error, but behind the serving of Allyssa Rizzo the Cats rattled off a 5-2 run winning the set on an Eagle hitting miscue.

The second set was all MSU as the Bocbats out-hit the Eagles .229 to .135. White posted four kills in the set, while Rizzo controlled the back row with six digs to give Montana State a 2-0 lead at intermission.

The final frame featured 11 ties and five lead changes. Eastern Washington took its largest lead of the set at 22-20 on a kill by MaKenna Davis. A Hannah Scott kill pulled MSU to within 22-21 and a Natalie Passeck winner evened the score. Following an Eastern Washington timeout, the Bobcats went ahead on a EWU hitting error and got to set point on a Black kill. The Eagles fought off one set point, but Hannah Absalonson's serve sailed long to give the Bobcats the victory.

"It was really satisfying for the girls," Jones said. "We went into the locker room up 2-0 and we challenged them to go out and execute. Eastern Washington is not a team that is going to come out and roll over. They fought very hard and I was impressed with the way our kids withstood the pressure they put on and were able to finish it out nicely."

Black guided Montana State with a match-high 11 kills, while Passeck finished with ten. White posted eight kills and a .500 attack mark, while also posting five blocks. Evi Wilson also notched five blocks for the Bobcats. Defensively, MSU was led by Rizzo with 18 digs and Lexi Goroski with ten. Senior setter Katie Rutecki dished out 33 assists and added five digs and two aces.

MSU's tenth victory of the season gives the program its first double-figure total since 2012, and its six league wins are also the most in five years.

The Bobcats postseason chances remain intact heading into its final match. MSU must defeat Idaho on Saturday night and have Sacramento State defeat Weber State in Ogden. The final two tournament spots could also come down to win/loss percentages or scoring margin between MSU, WSU and Northern Colorado. Idaho defeated Montana 3-2 on Thursday night in Missoula.

Saturday's match will also serve as Senior Night as the Bobcats celebrate the careers of Black, Rutecki and Audra Dugan. The match is slated for 7 p.m.