Montana State (20-7) had six players hit .300 or better and rolled to its 20th win of the season, the most for a Bobcat team since the 2002 campaign.
By: Tom Schulz
Montana State posted a season-high .395 attack mark and used a strong service game to dispatch rival Montana 25-20, 25-21, 25-21 in first round action at the Big Sky Conference Tournament on Wednesday afternoon in Bank of Colorado Arena in Greeley.
Montana State (20-7) had six players hit .300 or better and rolled to its 20th win of the season, the most for a Bobcat team since the 2002 campaign.
"I really loved our point-to-point mentality," said MSU first-year head coach Matt Houk. "We stayed in the moment and were steady throughout the entire match."
The Bobcats outhit Montana (11-18) in the opening set .400 to .280 as both Camryn Greenwald and Madilyn Siebler notched a perfect four kills on four swings. MSU's passing game enabled setter Nellie Stevenson to spread the offense and the Bobcats took advantage.
Tied at 15-all at the midway mark of the first set, MSU went on a 5-0 run as Siebler notched back-to-back kills, followed by a block by Jordan Radick and an ace by Greenwald. A Grizzly hitting error gave the Bobcats the set win.
"Our passing gave us a lot of options," Houk said. "Our hitters took their shots, and when the shots weren't there, they hit a shot that kept us in the rally and allowed us to eventually score points."
Montana held its biggest lead of the match in the second set at 11-7 on a Maddie Kremer kill. The Bobcats responded with a 9-4 run to take a 16-15 margin on a kill via Jourdain Kamps. The frame was tied twice down the stretch before the Bobcats recorded the final three points, including two from Kira Thomsen for the victory. Thomsen, a senior from Parker, Colo., posted six kills in the stanza.
Yesenia Enriquez
MSU got out to an early 5-1 lead in the third set following a Greenwald block and held the advantage until UM knotted the contest at 11-all. MSU owned a 19-18 lead after the Griz closed to within one on a Paige Clark ace. The Bobcats then went on a 4-1 run to take a 23-19 and closed out the match on a Greenwald kill.
"Montana played well and there was a super thin line with the margins," Houk said. "But I thought our service game did just enough to knock them out of system. We were able to control our technique and we were seeing the things we wanted to take."
Thomsen finished with a match-high 13 kills, while Kamps and Greenwald added nine each. Greenwald finished with a match-best .538 attack mark, while Kamps hit. .471. Siebler, a sophomore from Omaha, Neb., tallied seven kills, while hitting .333.
Stevenson, a junior setter, dished out 35 assists and added four kills. At the net, MSU was guided by Greenwald with three blocks. Shayla Webber anchored the backrow with a match-best nine digs.
"We'll sit back and enjoy this one for a few hours," Houk said. "Then it's time to turn the page and focus on the next one."
MSU plays the winner of No. 2 Northern Colorado/No. 7 Eastern Washington on Thursday night at 7 p.m. in semifinal action.
