Saturday, September 28
Greeley, CO
Montana State University
at
Northern Colorado
Photo by: R. Dean Hendrickson
Cats Face Bears Saturday Night
9/27/2019 3:21:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
The Montana State volleyball team will continue its Big Sky Conference opening week on the road when it travels to to Greeley, Colo., to face Northern Colorado on Saturday, Sept. 26 at 7 p.m. in Bank of Colorado Arena.
BOBCAT ROAD TRIP CONTINUES AT NORTHERN COLORADO:
The Montana State volleyball team will continue its Big Sky Conference opening week on the road when it travels to to Greeley, Colo., to face Northern Colorado on Saturday, Sept. 26 at 7 p.m. in Bank of Colorado Arena. The Bears defeated Montana on Thursday night (25-23, 25-19, 25-13 ) to open its league season. UNC, who was picked to finish fourth in the preseason Big Sky Conference Coaches poll, was paced in the win by Kailey Jo Ince and Lauren Hinrichs with 12 kills, apiece. MSU defeated the Griz on Tuesday night 25-23, 25-13, 25-18 and were led by Evi Wilson with a match-high 13 kills.
SIDE OUTS:
* Northern Colorado holds a 26-3 lead in the series with MSU going back to 1981
* The Cats are 0-4 against the Bears under the direction of head coach Daniel Jones
* Northern Colorado swept the Bobcats (3-0) in both meetings last season
* Montana State has lost 26 consecutive matches to Northern Colorado
* MSU's last win over the Bears (3-0) in Greeley was on Sept. 20, 1983
* The Bears have won the last four meetings in straight sets
* Montana State's last win over Northern Colorado (3-1) came in Bozeman in 2005
* Allyssa Rizzo became the second Bobcat ever to reach 1,700 digs in a career*
* Rizzo needs 20 digs to tie and 21 to break the all-time Bobcat mark of 1,720 saves
* Rizzo is currently ranked third in the nation averaging 5.95 digs per set
* Evi Wilson paces the Bobcats offensively averaging 2.97 kps, while hitting .220
1,000-DIG CLUB:
Senior Allyssa Rizzo became the just the ninth member of Montana State's prestigious 1,000-Dig Club when she notched 23 saves against Louisiana on Sept. 7, 2018. The last member of the club, Kasey Schlatter, made the list in 2014. Rizzo has her sights set on breaking the all-time Bobcat career digs record of 1,720 set by MSU's first-ever libero Kandice Kelly (2003-06). At Montana on Tuesday night, she became just the second Bobcat in history to go over 1,700-digs plateau. Rizzo, a product of Crestwood, Ill., needs 21 saves for the new Bobcat milestone.
1. Kandice Kelly, 03-06 1,720
2. Allyssa Rizzo, 16-- 1,700
3. Meghan Albiston, 07-10 1,577
4. Nicole Baker, 10-13 1,564
5. Kamber Kelly, 01-04 1,262
6. Meggie Malyurek, 02-05 1,223
7. Stephanie Laya, 97-00 1,183
8. Mindy Nowak, 96-99 1,073
9. Kasey Schlatter, 11-14 1,059
RIZZO 2.0:
Senior Allyssa Rizzo is ranked fourth in the nation averaging 5.95 digs per set. She is ranked behind Charlotte's Yumi Garcia and Wright State's Jenna Story (6.68) and Kent State's Erin Gardner (5.98). Rizzo's career-high 37 dig output against Northwestern State on Aug. 30 is the eighth highest total recorded this season at the NCAA Division I level. Rizzo leads the Big Sky at 5.95 per set. She is followed by Ellie Snook of Portland State, who averages 4.85 digs per outing.
GREAT SCOTT:
Junior Hannah Scott (who possesses the best playlist on the team) is off to a hot start after moving to the rightside position. The Hawthorne, Calif., native, has been in double figure kills in six matches, including a pair of 17-kill outings, which is just one kill shy of her career-best 18 kills set against Weber State as a freshman. The 5-11 outside hitter entered the season with a career .135 attack mark. After ten matches this season, Scott is hitting a team-high .268 from the field. She has posted six matches hitting over .250 this fall, including a season-best .438 (7-0-16) attack mark in MSU's win over Montana on Tuesday night.
HARD BLOCK CAFE:
For the first time in a long time, the Bobcats are ranked among the Big Skys' best in blocking. Montana State currently ranks fifth in the league averaging 2.28 blocks per set. MSU also sports two players among the top 10 in the conference. Junior Kelsie White in fourth in the conference averaging 1.13 blocks per set, while freshman Emma Pence is listed seventh at 1.05 per contest.
A LENDING HAND:
Former Bozeman High product and Montana Class AA state champion setter Allie Lynch is settling into her junior season at Montana State. Lynch currently averages 9.97 assists per set, which ranks third in the Big Sky Conference. On the season, she has registered four matches with 45 assists or more, including a season-high 51 assists in MSU's win over Loyola Maryland. Lynch also leads in the Bobcats from the service line with a team-best 11 aces. She has recorded a season-high three aces on two occasions this fall, the last coming against Arkansas on Aug. 31. Defensively, her 1.97 digs per set is second best on the squad, while her .56 blocks per set average rank fourth on the team.
CLIMBING THE LADDER:
As the Montana State program continues to improve, its numbers within the league's statistical categories have shown remarkable improvement, as well. In the 12 team statistical categories, the Bobcats are ranked among the top five teams in seven listings. MSU is ranked first in opponent aces (0.85), third in opoonent hitting percentage (.185) fourth in assists (11.44) and fifth in hitting percentage (.214), kills (12.26), blocks (2.28) and opponent digs (15.44).
FAB FROSH:
A pair of freshmen are part of Montana State's starting rotation. Outside hitter Kira Thomsen and middle blocker Emma Pence had made an early impact for MSU playing in all nine matches. The duo has combined for 157 kills, 71 digs and 49 blocks.
WHITE WATCH:
Junior Kelsie White is quickly moving up the all-time MSU block charts and is closing in on being ranked among the top 10 in block assists and total blocks.
BLOCK ASSISTS:
1. Megan Zanto, 02-05 511
2. Karen Weyler, 94-97 460
3. Cori Carper, 96-99 425
4. Anglea Wiebe, 03-06 394
5. Aimee Halyk, 99-02 308
6. Julia Handwerk, 98-01 290
7. Kim Steffel, 89-92 283
8. Mindy Nowak, 96-99 277
9. Natalee Godfrey, 12-15 271
10. Kamber Kelly, 01-04 269
-- Kelsie White, 2017-- 231
TOTAL BLOCKS:
1. Megan Zanto, 02-05 592
2. Karen Weyler, 94-97 570
3. Cori Carper, 96-99 490
4. Anglea Wiebe, 03-06 416
5. Kim Steffel, 89-92 356
6. Lisa McCanlies, 80-83 341
7. Aimee Halyk, 99-02 327
8. Julia Handwerk, 98-01 318
Becky Waddell, 83-86 318
10. Karin Lundqvist, 00-01 300
-- Kelsie White, 2017-- 256
FAN-TASTIC:
The Bobcats saw 935 in attendance last Tuesday for its home opener against Seattle U. MSU is consistently at the top of the Big Sky in attendance and has ranked among the nation's top 50, as well
The Montana State volleyball team will continue its Big Sky Conference opening week on the road when it travels to to Greeley, Colo., to face Northern Colorado on Saturday, Sept. 26 at 7 p.m. in Bank of Colorado Arena. The Bears defeated Montana on Thursday night (25-23, 25-19, 25-13 ) to open its league season. UNC, who was picked to finish fourth in the preseason Big Sky Conference Coaches poll, was paced in the win by Kailey Jo Ince and Lauren Hinrichs with 12 kills, apiece. MSU defeated the Griz on Tuesday night 25-23, 25-13, 25-18 and were led by Evi Wilson with a match-high 13 kills.
SIDE OUTS:
* Northern Colorado holds a 26-3 lead in the series with MSU going back to 1981
* The Cats are 0-4 against the Bears under the direction of head coach Daniel Jones
* Northern Colorado swept the Bobcats (3-0) in both meetings last season
* Montana State has lost 26 consecutive matches to Northern Colorado
* MSU's last win over the Bears (3-0) in Greeley was on Sept. 20, 1983
* The Bears have won the last four meetings in straight sets
* Montana State's last win over Northern Colorado (3-1) came in Bozeman in 2005
* Allyssa Rizzo became the second Bobcat ever to reach 1,700 digs in a career*
* Rizzo needs 20 digs to tie and 21 to break the all-time Bobcat mark of 1,720 saves
* Rizzo is currently ranked third in the nation averaging 5.95 digs per set
* Evi Wilson paces the Bobcats offensively averaging 2.97 kps, while hitting .220
1,000-DIG CLUB:
Senior Allyssa Rizzo became the just the ninth member of Montana State's prestigious 1,000-Dig Club when she notched 23 saves against Louisiana on Sept. 7, 2018. The last member of the club, Kasey Schlatter, made the list in 2014. Rizzo has her sights set on breaking the all-time Bobcat career digs record of 1,720 set by MSU's first-ever libero Kandice Kelly (2003-06). At Montana on Tuesday night, she became just the second Bobcat in history to go over 1,700-digs plateau. Rizzo, a product of Crestwood, Ill., needs 21 saves for the new Bobcat milestone.
1. Kandice Kelly, 03-06 1,720
2. Allyssa Rizzo, 16-- 1,700
3. Meghan Albiston, 07-10 1,577
4. Nicole Baker, 10-13 1,564
5. Kamber Kelly, 01-04 1,262
6. Meggie Malyurek, 02-05 1,223
7. Stephanie Laya, 97-00 1,183
8. Mindy Nowak, 96-99 1,073
9. Kasey Schlatter, 11-14 1,059
RIZZO 2.0:
Senior Allyssa Rizzo is ranked fourth in the nation averaging 5.95 digs per set. She is ranked behind Charlotte's Yumi Garcia and Wright State's Jenna Story (6.68) and Kent State's Erin Gardner (5.98). Rizzo's career-high 37 dig output against Northwestern State on Aug. 30 is the eighth highest total recorded this season at the NCAA Division I level. Rizzo leads the Big Sky at 5.95 per set. She is followed by Ellie Snook of Portland State, who averages 4.85 digs per outing.
GREAT SCOTT:
Junior Hannah Scott (who possesses the best playlist on the team) is off to a hot start after moving to the rightside position. The Hawthorne, Calif., native, has been in double figure kills in six matches, including a pair of 17-kill outings, which is just one kill shy of her career-best 18 kills set against Weber State as a freshman. The 5-11 outside hitter entered the season with a career .135 attack mark. After ten matches this season, Scott is hitting a team-high .268 from the field. She has posted six matches hitting over .250 this fall, including a season-best .438 (7-0-16) attack mark in MSU's win over Montana on Tuesday night.
HARD BLOCK CAFE:
For the first time in a long time, the Bobcats are ranked among the Big Skys' best in blocking. Montana State currently ranks fifth in the league averaging 2.28 blocks per set. MSU also sports two players among the top 10 in the conference. Junior Kelsie White in fourth in the conference averaging 1.13 blocks per set, while freshman Emma Pence is listed seventh at 1.05 per contest.
A LENDING HAND:
Former Bozeman High product and Montana Class AA state champion setter Allie Lynch is settling into her junior season at Montana State. Lynch currently averages 9.97 assists per set, which ranks third in the Big Sky Conference. On the season, she has registered four matches with 45 assists or more, including a season-high 51 assists in MSU's win over Loyola Maryland. Lynch also leads in the Bobcats from the service line with a team-best 11 aces. She has recorded a season-high three aces on two occasions this fall, the last coming against Arkansas on Aug. 31. Defensively, her 1.97 digs per set is second best on the squad, while her .56 blocks per set average rank fourth on the team.
CLIMBING THE LADDER:
As the Montana State program continues to improve, its numbers within the league's statistical categories have shown remarkable improvement, as well. In the 12 team statistical categories, the Bobcats are ranked among the top five teams in seven listings. MSU is ranked first in opponent aces (0.85), third in opoonent hitting percentage (.185) fourth in assists (11.44) and fifth in hitting percentage (.214), kills (12.26), blocks (2.28) and opponent digs (15.44).
FAB FROSH:
A pair of freshmen are part of Montana State's starting rotation. Outside hitter Kira Thomsen and middle blocker Emma Pence had made an early impact for MSU playing in all nine matches. The duo has combined for 157 kills, 71 digs and 49 blocks.
WHITE WATCH:
Junior Kelsie White is quickly moving up the all-time MSU block charts and is closing in on being ranked among the top 10 in block assists and total blocks.
BLOCK ASSISTS:
1. Megan Zanto, 02-05 511
2. Karen Weyler, 94-97 460
3. Cori Carper, 96-99 425
4. Anglea Wiebe, 03-06 394
5. Aimee Halyk, 99-02 308
6. Julia Handwerk, 98-01 290
7. Kim Steffel, 89-92 283
8. Mindy Nowak, 96-99 277
9. Natalee Godfrey, 12-15 271
10. Kamber Kelly, 01-04 269
-- Kelsie White, 2017-- 231
TOTAL BLOCKS:
1. Megan Zanto, 02-05 592
2. Karen Weyler, 94-97 570
3. Cori Carper, 96-99 490
4. Anglea Wiebe, 03-06 416
5. Kim Steffel, 89-92 356
6. Lisa McCanlies, 80-83 341
7. Aimee Halyk, 99-02 327
8. Julia Handwerk, 98-01 318
Becky Waddell, 83-86 318
10. Karin Lundqvist, 00-01 300
-- Kelsie White, 2017-- 256
FAN-TASTIC:
The Bobcats saw 935 in attendance last Tuesday for its home opener against Seattle U. MSU is consistently at the top of the Big Sky in attendance and has ranked among the nation's top 50, as well
Players Mentioned
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/ Women's Volleyball
MB
/ Women's Volleyball
L/DS
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/ Women's Volleyball
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/ Women's Volleyball
MB
/ Women's Volleyball
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