Thursday, October 21
Flagstaff, AZ
7:30 p.m.
Montana State University
at
Northern Arizona
Emma Pence (12) had seven kills and eight blocks against Portland State last Saturday afternoon.
Cats Embark on Southwest Road Trip
10/20/2021 1:47:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
The Bobcat volleyball team takes to the Big Sky Conference road this week. MSU opens play at Northern Arizona on Thursday, Oct. 21 at 7:30 p.m. (MT) in Flagstaff.
WHO: Montana State at Northern Arizona
WHEN: Thursday, Oct. 21 at 7:30 p.m. (MT)
WHERE: Flagstaff, Arizona - Rolle Activity Center
RECORDS: Montana St. 9-10, 5-3; No. Arizona 7-10; 5-3
SERIES: Northern Arizona leads the series42-25 (1987)
LAST MTG: Feb. 7, 2021 - @ Montana State 3, No. Arizona 0
WHO: Montana State at Southern Utah
WHEN: Saturday, Oct. 23, 2021 at 12 p.m. (MT)
WHERE: Cedar City, Utah - America First Center
RECORDS: Montana State 9-10, 5-3; So. Utah 6-14, 2-6
SERIES: Montana State leads series 7-6 (2012)
LAST MTG: March 31, 2021 - So. Utah 3, MSU 2 @ BSCT
LIVE STATS: Live statistics of MSU's matches at Northern Arizona and Southern Utah can be accessed at msubobcats.com
LIVE VIDEO: MSU's matches at Northern Arizona and Southern Utah will be streamed live on ESPN+ (subscription necessary).
NEXT UP: The Bobcat volleyball team takes to the Big Sky Conference road this week. MSU opens play at Northern Arizona on Thursday, Oct. 21 at 7:30 p.m. (MT) in Flagstaff. Montana State will close out the weekend at Southern Utah on Saturday, Oct. 23 at 12 p.m. in Cedar City.
BOBCAT BITES: MSU is ranked #164 in this week's RPI...the highest ranked team the Bobcats have defeated this fall is #116 Boise State, followed by #131 North Texas...MSU is 1-5 in five-set matches, losing to #25 Washington, #31 Arkansas, #68 Weber State, #123 Utah State and #145 Long Beach State...other Big Sky rankings in the RPI include #64 Northern Colorado, #107 Portland State, #179 Northern Arizona, #239 Montana, #243 Idaho State, #262 Southern Utah, #263 Eastern Washington, #270 Sacramento State and #307 Idaho...Montana State saw its four-match win streak snapped at home against Portland State (3-1) on Saturday afternoon. The streak was MSU's longest of the season.
BOBCAT OFFENSIVE/DEFENSIVE PLAYER(S) OF THE WEEK: Kira Thomsen and Emma Pence were Montana State's Offensive and Defensive Players of the Week, respectively, for their efforts against Sacramento State and Portland State. Thomsen, a 5-10 sophomore outside hitter from Parker, Colo., averaged 4.13 kills and 3.25 digs per set, while hitting .224 for the weekend. Thomsen had her best outing with 18 kills and 18 digs, while hitting .333 and adding one blocks as MSU defeated Sacramento State (3-1) on Thursday night. Pence, a 6-2 sophomore middle blocker from Carson City, Nevada continues to be the Big Sky's top blocker, leading the league averaging 1.43 per contest. Pence's 103 total blocks is tops in the Big Sky and ranks No. 4 in the nation.
SIDE OUTS:
* MSU is 1-5 in five setters with two losses to Power 5 schools - Arkansas & #7 Washington
* Hannah Scott now has 1,170 career kills, which ranks fifth all-time at Montana State
* Kira Thomsen averaged 4.13 kills, 3.25 digs & .38 blocks per set with a .224 htg% last week
* The Cats rank #1 in the Big Sky & #55 in the nation averaging 2.43 blocks per set
* MSU ranks #1 in the Big Sky and #29 in the country in total team blocks (182)
* Montana State ranks #1 in the Big Sky and #108 in the country in hitting percentage (.224)
* The Bobcats rank #1 in the Big Sky and #70 in the nation with 868 team assists
* Sophomore Emma Pence is #1 in the Big Sky and #11 in the nation, averaging 1.43 bps
* Pence's 103 total blocks rank #1 in the Big Sky and #4 in the country this week
* Freshman Jordan Radick is #6 in the Big Sky and #203 in the nation, averaging 1.00 bps
THE SCOUTING REPORT: Northern Arizona is 7-10 overall and 5-3 in Big Sky play after splitting a pair of home matches, las weekend. The Lumberjacks opened the week with a 3-0 sweep of Idaho State, before dropping a 3-0 decision to league-leading Weber State on Saturday. Both the Bobcats and Lumberjacks enter Thursday's contest at 5-3 conference action and sitting fourth/fifth in the Big Sky standings. In its win over Idaho State, NAU was led by Ryan Davis, a 6-2 senior opposite hitter from Chandler, Ariz., who tallied seven kills and a .700 attack mark, while Taylor Jacobsen, a 6-1 junior outside hitter from Chandler, Arizona, and Morgan Gappmeyer, a 6-foot junior outside hitter from Oro Valley, Ariz., chipped in nine and eight kills, respectively. For the match, the Lumberjacks outhit the Bengals .270 to .112. In its loss to Weber State, the Lumberjacks were paced by Jacobsen with 11 kills and 18 digs, while Gappmeyer added seven kills and five digs. The Wildcats outhit the Lumberjacks .295 to .192 in the three-set victory. On the season, NAU has been led by Jacobsen, who averages 3.59 kills and 2.64 digs, while hitting .179 from the field. Defensively, Millie O'Ketter guides the squad averaging 3.82 digs per contest. MSU and NAU met twice during the spring season - both matches in Bozeman. The Lumberjacks took the first contest in five sets, before the Bobcats claimed the second meeting in straight sets. MSU's last victory in Flagstaff was a 3-2 decision on Oct. 10, 2019. Southern Utah is 6-14 overall and 2-6 in league action after splitting a pair of home matched to Weber State and Idaho State. In its 3-0 loss to WSU, the Thunderbirds were led by Ronnie Robinson, a 5-11 junior outside hitter from Enterprise, Utah. Robinson finished the contest with eight kills, a .368 attack mark and eight digs. On Saturday, the T-Birds handed Idaho State a 25-18, 25-22, 25-20 setback as Stacey Hone, a 6-1 senior opposite side hitter from North Las Vegas, Nevada recorded nine kills, a .273 attack mark and four blocks. On the season, SUU has been guided by Hone, who is averaging 2.03 kills per set. Defensively, the T-Birds are led by Calli Johnson at 3.79 digs per set, and Raegen Ashby at 1.11 blocks per outing. MSU and SUU met just once during the 2021 spring season, with the T-Birds upsetting the Bobcats in the first-round of the Big Sky Tournament in five sets. Southern Utah will play Montana on Thursday night before facing MSU on Saturday.
HARD BLOCK CAFE: Montana State is ranked first in the Big Sky averaging 2.43 blocks per set. MSU's 2.43 bps also ranks #55 in the nation. The Bobcats' 182 total blocks is first in the conference and #30 in the nation. Individually, Emma Pence leads the Big Sky averaging 1.43 blocks per contest. That number ranks #11 in the country. Pence's 103 total blocks also ranks first in the Big Sky and ranks an impressive #4 in the nation. MSU had a season-best 18 team blocks in its match with Arkansas on Sept. 2 in Bozeman.
GREAT SCOTT: Senior Hannah Scott went over the 1,000-kill mark with her fourth block against Portland on Sept. 3. The Hawthorne, Calif, product is now the 16th member of MSU's prestigious 1000-kill club. Her 1,170 career kills rank fifth on Montana State's all-time kills' chart. On the season, she is averaging 3.05 kills per set. Last weekend, Scott averaged 3.38 kills and 2.50 digs per set. Against Weber State on Sept. 30, Scott had a season-best 22 kills to go along with a season-high 14 digs. She followed that performance with 11 kills, a .333 attack mark and eight saves against Idaho State. Scott's best performance came against #7 Washington on Sept. 16 with 17 kills, while hitting .400 (17-3-35) from the floor. In addition, Scott added nine digs, five blocks and an ace as the Bobcats almost pulled the upset over the Huskies. Scott was named to the Boise State All-Tournament team to open this season. She has been in double-figure kills in 13-of-19 matches. Scott is currently first on the squad with 259.5 points. During the spring season, Scott had a breakout campaign which culminated in being named to the All-Big Sky First-Team as she averaged 2.89 kills per set, while hitting .232 from the floor. Scott posted a career-high 25 kills against Idaho State on Feb. 20. In addition, she recorded 18 double-figure kill matches. Scott also averaged 2.18 digs per set and logged seven double-digit dig matches, including a season-high 15 against Portland State on Feb. 28. Scott recorded a career-high 10 blocks against Northern Colorado at the league tournament in 2019.
CLIMBING THE LADDER: As the MSU program continues to improve, its numbers within the Big Sky Conference's statistical categories have shown remarkable improvement, as well. In the 15 team statistical categories, the Cats rank at the top of the league in five categories, including blocks per set (2.43 bps), team total blocks (182), hitting percentage (.224), team kills (932), and team assists (868).
A LENDING HAND: Former Bozeman High product Allie Lynch is averaging 5.02 assists per game running MSU's 6-2 offense. At the Bobcat Classic in early September, she played in eight sets and averaged 4.29 assists and .63 digs per set. Lynch dished out a season-high 32 assists against Weber State on Sept. 30. Last week, Lynch averaged 7.25 aps. On the season, she is also averaging 1.90 digs per set, including a season-best 13 saves, twice, the last against Portland State. Freshman Audrey Hofer has started eight times and has played in 18 of MSU's 19 matches. Over the course of two matches last week, she averaged 5.88 assists and 1.25 digs per set. In MSU's 3-1 win over Sacramento State last Thursday, she notched a weekend high 24 assists. The Helena Capital grad dished out a season-high 28 assists at North Texas and registered a career-high 11 digs against the Mean Green. On the season, she is averaging 5.22 assists per set. Hofer also chips in 1.38 digs per set. Hofer's registered one double-double and is third on the team with 13 aces. Delaney Shearan is averaging 4.56 assists and 1.60 digs per set on the season. Shearan dished out a season-high 26 against Long Beach State in the first match of the season. Last spring, Shearan dished out a season and career-high 33 assists in MSU 3-2 win over Idaho State.
MAY I ASSIST YOU?: Senior setter Allie Lynch is slowly creeping up the all-time Montana State assists chart. The Bozeman native went over the 1,000-assist plateau against Portland State on Oct. 24, 2019. Former Bobcat standout Brooke Olsen-Roush (1996-99) holds the all-time Bobcats record set back in the old 15-point sideout scoring era. Here's a look at MSU's all-time Top 10, and where Lynch stands:
1. Brooke Olsen, 1996-99 4,712
2. Kamber Kelly, 2001-04 3,751
3. Jennifer Lundquist, 2009-12 2,500
4. Lorraine Morrison, 1999-01 2,293
5. Allie Lynch, 2017--- 2,038
THOMSEN TIME: Sophomore Kira Thomsen earned tournament MVP honors at the Boise State Invitational to open the season after posting a .337 attack mark and averaging 3.42 kills, 2.83 digs and .58 aces per set. At the Bobcat Classic, the Parker, Colo., product averaged 3.00 kills and 1.64 digs per set with a .260 attack mark. And, at the North Texas Challenge, she averaged 2.55 kills and 1.18 digs per game. In two matches last week, Thomsen totaled 33 kills and 26 digs. On the season, she has been in double-figure kills on 13 occasions and has produced six double-doubles. She matched a season-best 18 kills in MSU's 3-1 win over Sacramento State on Thursday night. Thomsen currently ranks second on the team with 222 kills (2.96 kps) and is first in digs with 178 (2.37 dps). On Sept. 30 against Weber State, Thomsen notched a season-high 24 digs. Her 255 points is second to Hannah Scott (259.5). Last spring, Thomsen earned First-Team All-Big Sky Conference honors after averaging 3.52 kills and 4.02 points per set during MSU's spring season. She registered a season-best 22 kills at Weber State on March 20, and a career-high 26 digs against Portland State on Feb.27.
THE GREAT WALL OF BOZEMAN: Sophomore Emma Pence, who was one of two players in the league that garnered #BigSkyVB Offensive and Defensive Player of the Week accolades during the spring, earned #BigSkyVB Defensive Player of the Week three weeks ago after averaging a whopping 2.13 blocks per set against Weber State and Idaho State. Pence currently ranks first in the Big Sky in blocks per set (1.43 bps), which ranks 11th in the nation. Pence's 103 total blocks ranks fourth in the country. She has been in double-figure kills four times, matching a season-best 11 kills against Weber State on Sept. 30. Pence matched a season-high nine blocks in three sets against Idaho State Oct. 2, after posting eight against the Wildcats. Last week, the Carson City, Nevada product averaged2.13 kills and 1.75 blocks per set against Sacramento State and Portland State.
THE MENACE FROM ENNIS: Jourdain Klein, a 6-1 outside hitter from Ennis, Mont., combined for 23 kills, 12 digs and four blocks, while hitting .385 (23-3-52) from the field last week in matches against Sacramento State and Portland State. At the North Texas Challenge in mid-September, Klein had a very efficient tournament hitting, recording a .444 (17-1-36) attack for the three matches. She tallied a season-high eight blocks against Arkansas. Klein registered a season-high 13 kills against Sacramento State on Thursday night. Last spring, as a redshirt-freshman, she was named to the All-Big Sky Second-Team team after averaging 1.49 kills and .97 blocks per set. During spring ball, she recorded a season and career-high 14 kills as the Bobcats beat Portland State Feb. 28.
TURN UP THE VOLUME: Sophomore Avery Turnage played in all eight sets last week against Sacramento State and Portland State. She totaled 13 kills, hit. 282 and added five blocks. Turnage had her best match of the week against the Hornets posting nine kills and two blocks. The product of Idaho Falls, Idaho registered a career-high 11 kills against Fresno State. On the season, she is averaging 1.57 kills and .70 blocks per set, while hitting .197 from the floor. Turnage notched a career-high seven blocks as Montana State upset Boise State on Aug. 28 in Bronco Gym.
MORE FROM THE MIDDLE: Freshman Jordan Radick posted 16 kills (2.00 kps) and five blocks (.63 bps), while hitting .294 (16-6-34) against Sacramento State and Portland State, last week. Radick, a graduate of Bozeman High, had her best outing against Portland State last Saturday, recording 11 kills, a .318 attack mark and three blocks. The 11 kills were a season-best. She notched a season-high 12 blocks vs. Arkansas on Sept. 2 and has tallied five matches hitting .400 or better this fall.
YES, WE'RE SURE: Freshman Maci Abshier (Ab-sure) has started the nine matches at libero and is averaging 3.31digs per set in Big Sky play, which ranks ninth in the league. Against Weber State on Sept. 30, she recorded a season-best 25 digs.
WHEN IT SAYS LIBBY, LIBBY, LIBBY: Libby Christensen is averaging 3.22 digs per set. She has been in double-digit digs on seven occasions, including 19 digs at Boise State. Christensen tallied a career-high 27 saves against Southern Utah at last year's Big Sky tournament.
WHEN: Thursday, Oct. 21 at 7:30 p.m. (MT)
WHERE: Flagstaff, Arizona - Rolle Activity Center
RECORDS: Montana St. 9-10, 5-3; No. Arizona 7-10; 5-3
SERIES: Northern Arizona leads the series42-25 (1987)
LAST MTG: Feb. 7, 2021 - @ Montana State 3, No. Arizona 0
WHO: Montana State at Southern Utah
WHEN: Saturday, Oct. 23, 2021 at 12 p.m. (MT)
WHERE: Cedar City, Utah - America First Center
RECORDS: Montana State 9-10, 5-3; So. Utah 6-14, 2-6
SERIES: Montana State leads series 7-6 (2012)
LAST MTG: March 31, 2021 - So. Utah 3, MSU 2 @ BSCT
LIVE STATS: Live statistics of MSU's matches at Northern Arizona and Southern Utah can be accessed at msubobcats.com
LIVE VIDEO: MSU's matches at Northern Arizona and Southern Utah will be streamed live on ESPN+ (subscription necessary).
NEXT UP: The Bobcat volleyball team takes to the Big Sky Conference road this week. MSU opens play at Northern Arizona on Thursday, Oct. 21 at 7:30 p.m. (MT) in Flagstaff. Montana State will close out the weekend at Southern Utah on Saturday, Oct. 23 at 12 p.m. in Cedar City.
BOBCAT BITES: MSU is ranked #164 in this week's RPI...the highest ranked team the Bobcats have defeated this fall is #116 Boise State, followed by #131 North Texas...MSU is 1-5 in five-set matches, losing to #25 Washington, #31 Arkansas, #68 Weber State, #123 Utah State and #145 Long Beach State...other Big Sky rankings in the RPI include #64 Northern Colorado, #107 Portland State, #179 Northern Arizona, #239 Montana, #243 Idaho State, #262 Southern Utah, #263 Eastern Washington, #270 Sacramento State and #307 Idaho...Montana State saw its four-match win streak snapped at home against Portland State (3-1) on Saturday afternoon. The streak was MSU's longest of the season.
BOBCAT OFFENSIVE/DEFENSIVE PLAYER(S) OF THE WEEK: Kira Thomsen and Emma Pence were Montana State's Offensive and Defensive Players of the Week, respectively, for their efforts against Sacramento State and Portland State. Thomsen, a 5-10 sophomore outside hitter from Parker, Colo., averaged 4.13 kills and 3.25 digs per set, while hitting .224 for the weekend. Thomsen had her best outing with 18 kills and 18 digs, while hitting .333 and adding one blocks as MSU defeated Sacramento State (3-1) on Thursday night. Pence, a 6-2 sophomore middle blocker from Carson City, Nevada continues to be the Big Sky's top blocker, leading the league averaging 1.43 per contest. Pence's 103 total blocks is tops in the Big Sky and ranks No. 4 in the nation.
SIDE OUTS:
* MSU is 1-5 in five setters with two losses to Power 5 schools - Arkansas & #7 Washington
* Hannah Scott now has 1,170 career kills, which ranks fifth all-time at Montana State
* Kira Thomsen averaged 4.13 kills, 3.25 digs & .38 blocks per set with a .224 htg% last week
* The Cats rank #1 in the Big Sky & #55 in the nation averaging 2.43 blocks per set
* MSU ranks #1 in the Big Sky and #29 in the country in total team blocks (182)
* Montana State ranks #1 in the Big Sky and #108 in the country in hitting percentage (.224)
* The Bobcats rank #1 in the Big Sky and #70 in the nation with 868 team assists
* Sophomore Emma Pence is #1 in the Big Sky and #11 in the nation, averaging 1.43 bps
* Pence's 103 total blocks rank #1 in the Big Sky and #4 in the country this week
* Freshman Jordan Radick is #6 in the Big Sky and #203 in the nation, averaging 1.00 bps
THE SCOUTING REPORT: Northern Arizona is 7-10 overall and 5-3 in Big Sky play after splitting a pair of home matches, las weekend. The Lumberjacks opened the week with a 3-0 sweep of Idaho State, before dropping a 3-0 decision to league-leading Weber State on Saturday. Both the Bobcats and Lumberjacks enter Thursday's contest at 5-3 conference action and sitting fourth/fifth in the Big Sky standings. In its win over Idaho State, NAU was led by Ryan Davis, a 6-2 senior opposite hitter from Chandler, Ariz., who tallied seven kills and a .700 attack mark, while Taylor Jacobsen, a 6-1 junior outside hitter from Chandler, Arizona, and Morgan Gappmeyer, a 6-foot junior outside hitter from Oro Valley, Ariz., chipped in nine and eight kills, respectively. For the match, the Lumberjacks outhit the Bengals .270 to .112. In its loss to Weber State, the Lumberjacks were paced by Jacobsen with 11 kills and 18 digs, while Gappmeyer added seven kills and five digs. The Wildcats outhit the Lumberjacks .295 to .192 in the three-set victory. On the season, NAU has been led by Jacobsen, who averages 3.59 kills and 2.64 digs, while hitting .179 from the field. Defensively, Millie O'Ketter guides the squad averaging 3.82 digs per contest. MSU and NAU met twice during the spring season - both matches in Bozeman. The Lumberjacks took the first contest in five sets, before the Bobcats claimed the second meeting in straight sets. MSU's last victory in Flagstaff was a 3-2 decision on Oct. 10, 2019. Southern Utah is 6-14 overall and 2-6 in league action after splitting a pair of home matched to Weber State and Idaho State. In its 3-0 loss to WSU, the Thunderbirds were led by Ronnie Robinson, a 5-11 junior outside hitter from Enterprise, Utah. Robinson finished the contest with eight kills, a .368 attack mark and eight digs. On Saturday, the T-Birds handed Idaho State a 25-18, 25-22, 25-20 setback as Stacey Hone, a 6-1 senior opposite side hitter from North Las Vegas, Nevada recorded nine kills, a .273 attack mark and four blocks. On the season, SUU has been guided by Hone, who is averaging 2.03 kills per set. Defensively, the T-Birds are led by Calli Johnson at 3.79 digs per set, and Raegen Ashby at 1.11 blocks per outing. MSU and SUU met just once during the 2021 spring season, with the T-Birds upsetting the Bobcats in the first-round of the Big Sky Tournament in five sets. Southern Utah will play Montana on Thursday night before facing MSU on Saturday.
HARD BLOCK CAFE: Montana State is ranked first in the Big Sky averaging 2.43 blocks per set. MSU's 2.43 bps also ranks #55 in the nation. The Bobcats' 182 total blocks is first in the conference and #30 in the nation. Individually, Emma Pence leads the Big Sky averaging 1.43 blocks per contest. That number ranks #11 in the country. Pence's 103 total blocks also ranks first in the Big Sky and ranks an impressive #4 in the nation. MSU had a season-best 18 team blocks in its match with Arkansas on Sept. 2 in Bozeman.
GREAT SCOTT: Senior Hannah Scott went over the 1,000-kill mark with her fourth block against Portland on Sept. 3. The Hawthorne, Calif, product is now the 16th member of MSU's prestigious 1000-kill club. Her 1,170 career kills rank fifth on Montana State's all-time kills' chart. On the season, she is averaging 3.05 kills per set. Last weekend, Scott averaged 3.38 kills and 2.50 digs per set. Against Weber State on Sept. 30, Scott had a season-best 22 kills to go along with a season-high 14 digs. She followed that performance with 11 kills, a .333 attack mark and eight saves against Idaho State. Scott's best performance came against #7 Washington on Sept. 16 with 17 kills, while hitting .400 (17-3-35) from the floor. In addition, Scott added nine digs, five blocks and an ace as the Bobcats almost pulled the upset over the Huskies. Scott was named to the Boise State All-Tournament team to open this season. She has been in double-figure kills in 13-of-19 matches. Scott is currently first on the squad with 259.5 points. During the spring season, Scott had a breakout campaign which culminated in being named to the All-Big Sky First-Team as she averaged 2.89 kills per set, while hitting .232 from the floor. Scott posted a career-high 25 kills against Idaho State on Feb. 20. In addition, she recorded 18 double-figure kill matches. Scott also averaged 2.18 digs per set and logged seven double-digit dig matches, including a season-high 15 against Portland State on Feb. 28. Scott recorded a career-high 10 blocks against Northern Colorado at the league tournament in 2019.
CLIMBING THE LADDER: As the MSU program continues to improve, its numbers within the Big Sky Conference's statistical categories have shown remarkable improvement, as well. In the 15 team statistical categories, the Cats rank at the top of the league in five categories, including blocks per set (2.43 bps), team total blocks (182), hitting percentage (.224), team kills (932), and team assists (868).
A LENDING HAND: Former Bozeman High product Allie Lynch is averaging 5.02 assists per game running MSU's 6-2 offense. At the Bobcat Classic in early September, she played in eight sets and averaged 4.29 assists and .63 digs per set. Lynch dished out a season-high 32 assists against Weber State on Sept. 30. Last week, Lynch averaged 7.25 aps. On the season, she is also averaging 1.90 digs per set, including a season-best 13 saves, twice, the last against Portland State. Freshman Audrey Hofer has started eight times and has played in 18 of MSU's 19 matches. Over the course of two matches last week, she averaged 5.88 assists and 1.25 digs per set. In MSU's 3-1 win over Sacramento State last Thursday, she notched a weekend high 24 assists. The Helena Capital grad dished out a season-high 28 assists at North Texas and registered a career-high 11 digs against the Mean Green. On the season, she is averaging 5.22 assists per set. Hofer also chips in 1.38 digs per set. Hofer's registered one double-double and is third on the team with 13 aces. Delaney Shearan is averaging 4.56 assists and 1.60 digs per set on the season. Shearan dished out a season-high 26 against Long Beach State in the first match of the season. Last spring, Shearan dished out a season and career-high 33 assists in MSU 3-2 win over Idaho State.
MAY I ASSIST YOU?: Senior setter Allie Lynch is slowly creeping up the all-time Montana State assists chart. The Bozeman native went over the 1,000-assist plateau against Portland State on Oct. 24, 2019. Former Bobcat standout Brooke Olsen-Roush (1996-99) holds the all-time Bobcats record set back in the old 15-point sideout scoring era. Here's a look at MSU's all-time Top 10, and where Lynch stands:
1. Brooke Olsen, 1996-99 4,712
2. Kamber Kelly, 2001-04 3,751
3. Jennifer Lundquist, 2009-12 2,500
4. Lorraine Morrison, 1999-01 2,293
5. Allie Lynch, 2017--- 2,038
THOMSEN TIME: Sophomore Kira Thomsen earned tournament MVP honors at the Boise State Invitational to open the season after posting a .337 attack mark and averaging 3.42 kills, 2.83 digs and .58 aces per set. At the Bobcat Classic, the Parker, Colo., product averaged 3.00 kills and 1.64 digs per set with a .260 attack mark. And, at the North Texas Challenge, she averaged 2.55 kills and 1.18 digs per game. In two matches last week, Thomsen totaled 33 kills and 26 digs. On the season, she has been in double-figure kills on 13 occasions and has produced six double-doubles. She matched a season-best 18 kills in MSU's 3-1 win over Sacramento State on Thursday night. Thomsen currently ranks second on the team with 222 kills (2.96 kps) and is first in digs with 178 (2.37 dps). On Sept. 30 against Weber State, Thomsen notched a season-high 24 digs. Her 255 points is second to Hannah Scott (259.5). Last spring, Thomsen earned First-Team All-Big Sky Conference honors after averaging 3.52 kills and 4.02 points per set during MSU's spring season. She registered a season-best 22 kills at Weber State on March 20, and a career-high 26 digs against Portland State on Feb.27.
THE GREAT WALL OF BOZEMAN: Sophomore Emma Pence, who was one of two players in the league that garnered #BigSkyVB Offensive and Defensive Player of the Week accolades during the spring, earned #BigSkyVB Defensive Player of the Week three weeks ago after averaging a whopping 2.13 blocks per set against Weber State and Idaho State. Pence currently ranks first in the Big Sky in blocks per set (1.43 bps), which ranks 11th in the nation. Pence's 103 total blocks ranks fourth in the country. She has been in double-figure kills four times, matching a season-best 11 kills against Weber State on Sept. 30. Pence matched a season-high nine blocks in three sets against Idaho State Oct. 2, after posting eight against the Wildcats. Last week, the Carson City, Nevada product averaged2.13 kills and 1.75 blocks per set against Sacramento State and Portland State.
THE MENACE FROM ENNIS: Jourdain Klein, a 6-1 outside hitter from Ennis, Mont., combined for 23 kills, 12 digs and four blocks, while hitting .385 (23-3-52) from the field last week in matches against Sacramento State and Portland State. At the North Texas Challenge in mid-September, Klein had a very efficient tournament hitting, recording a .444 (17-1-36) attack for the three matches. She tallied a season-high eight blocks against Arkansas. Klein registered a season-high 13 kills against Sacramento State on Thursday night. Last spring, as a redshirt-freshman, she was named to the All-Big Sky Second-Team team after averaging 1.49 kills and .97 blocks per set. During spring ball, she recorded a season and career-high 14 kills as the Bobcats beat Portland State Feb. 28.
TURN UP THE VOLUME: Sophomore Avery Turnage played in all eight sets last week against Sacramento State and Portland State. She totaled 13 kills, hit. 282 and added five blocks. Turnage had her best match of the week against the Hornets posting nine kills and two blocks. The product of Idaho Falls, Idaho registered a career-high 11 kills against Fresno State. On the season, she is averaging 1.57 kills and .70 blocks per set, while hitting .197 from the floor. Turnage notched a career-high seven blocks as Montana State upset Boise State on Aug. 28 in Bronco Gym.
MORE FROM THE MIDDLE: Freshman Jordan Radick posted 16 kills (2.00 kps) and five blocks (.63 bps), while hitting .294 (16-6-34) against Sacramento State and Portland State, last week. Radick, a graduate of Bozeman High, had her best outing against Portland State last Saturday, recording 11 kills, a .318 attack mark and three blocks. The 11 kills were a season-best. She notched a season-high 12 blocks vs. Arkansas on Sept. 2 and has tallied five matches hitting .400 or better this fall.
YES, WE'RE SURE: Freshman Maci Abshier (Ab-sure) has started the nine matches at libero and is averaging 3.31digs per set in Big Sky play, which ranks ninth in the league. Against Weber State on Sept. 30, she recorded a season-best 25 digs.
WHEN IT SAYS LIBBY, LIBBY, LIBBY: Libby Christensen is averaging 3.22 digs per set. She has been in double-digit digs on seven occasions, including 19 digs at Boise State. Christensen tallied a career-high 27 saves against Southern Utah at last year's Big Sky tournament.
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