Montana State University
Northern Colorado
Cats & Bears: MSU Hosts UNC Tonight at 6 p.m.
10/26/2018 1:22:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
After knocking off the Grizzlies on Tuesday night, the Cats will face the Bears of Northern Colorado this evening.
ANOTHER BEAR ENCOUNTER:
After knocking off the Grizzlies on Tuesday night, the Cats will face the Bears of Northern Colorado this evening. UNC, who defeated MSU 3-0 in Greeley on Sept. 28, enters the match 10-9 overall and 6-4 in Big Sky Conference action. UNC sits in fifth place and 1.5 games ahead of the Bobcats. On the season, the Bears have been led by Kortney Lockey, who averages 3.36 kills and 3.07 digs per set. UNC also gets a hefty contribution from Lauren Hinrichs. Hinrichs, a 6-1 middle blocker, averages 2.49 kills per set, while hitting a team-best .311 from the field. Libero Taylor Els leads the Big Sky averaging 5.51 digs per set.
CAT SWEEP GRIZ:
Montana State middle blocker Kelsie White fed off the energy of the sold-out crowd of 1,500 on Tuesday night in Shroyer Gym posting 11 kills, a .579 attack mark and six blocks to lift the Bobcats to a straight set 25-21, 25-23, 25-17 victory over Montana to give MSU a 57-56 advantage in the all-time series between the intra-state rivals. Aside from White's outstanding performance, Wilson also posted a team-high 11 kills, while hitting .450 from the field. Playing without senior outside hitter Natalie Passeck, a pair of Bobcat freshmen answered the call on the pins as Caspersen and Hailey Merkes combined for 13 kills, a .219 attack mark and seven blocks. Setter Carina Lehto finished with 34 assists, six digs and two blocks, while libero Allyssa Rizzo paced all players with 13 digs.
SIDE OUTS:
* Tonight's match against will be the 28th meeting between the two Big Sky rivals
* UNC holds a commanding 24-3 lead in the all-time series dating back to Sept. 25, 1981
* The Cats have never beaten Northern Colorado in Big Sky play dropping 24 straight
* MSU's last win over Northern Colorado (3-1) came on Sept. 10, 2005
* Junior libero Allyssa Rizzo is fourth on MSU's career digs list with 1,309 saves
* Rizzo is third in the Big Sky at 5.41 digs per set, which ranks 20th nationally
* Montana State is averaging 1,174 fans per match, which ranks 40th in the nation
