Montana in Texas for opening road trip of 2008
9/1/2008 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
The University of Montana volleyball team will be on the road for the first time in 2008 when the Grizzlies play in Southern Methodist's four-team tournament in Dallas, Texas, this weekend. In addition to the Grizzlies and Mustangs, Stephen F. Austin and New Orleans will also be competing.
Montana (3-1) will face SMU (2-1) at 12:30 p.m. (MT) and Stephen F. Austin (1-2) at 4 p.m. (MT) Friday and New Orleans (3-0) at noon (MT) Saturday.
The Grizzlies are coming off a successful opening weekend, tying for first at the Montana Invitational with a 3-1 record. Montana defeated UC Riverside, Gonzaga and Bradley, all in four games, before dropping their tournament finale to North Dakota State in three games.
"I'm looking forward to going on the road and getting this team up to the task of being able to compete at a high level away from home," Montana coach Jerry Wagner said. "It's going to be a pleasure to get this team back on the court. They work so hard.
"I'm happy with our 3-1 record (at last weekend's tournament). We were able to play in a lot of close games and break through in a majority of them."
Scouting SMU: The Mustangs are 2-1 after finishing second at last weekend's tournament at Baylor. SMU lost in three games to host Baylor in its opener, then came back to down Lamar in four games and Prairie View A&M in three games.
Sophomore Kathryn Wilkerson and freshman Dana Powell, both outside hitters, were named to the all-tournament team. The pair combined to average 5.9 kills per game on .223 hitting.
Junior libero Carly Bergquist, who played at Oregon as a freshman before transferring to SMU, had 18 digs in three matches. She is the sister of Grizzly quarterback Cole Bergquist.
Southern Methodist went 16-15 in 2007, tying for eighth in Conference USA with a 6-10 league record. The No. 9 seed, SMU fell to No. 8 East Carolina in the opening round of its conference tournament.
The Mustangs are coached by Lisa Seifert. She is 181-188 in her 13th season at SMU.
Friday's matchup will be the first between SMU and Montana.
Scouting Stephen F. Austin: The Ladyjacks are 1-2 on the season. After winning a neutral-site match at Lexington, Ky., against Western Carolina Friday, they dropped a pair of matches at Miami of Ohio's tournament on Saturday, falling to both St. Louis and Miami in three games.
Seniors Lauren Railey and Shelly Swendig, both outside hitters, were named to Miami's all-tournament team. Railey is averaging a team-high 3.67 kills per game through three matches, while Swendig is hitting a team-best .321.
SFA went 27-8 in 2007, tying for first in the Southland Conference at 15-1. The Ladyjacks lost the Southland Conference tournament championship match to Texas State in five games.
Stephen F. Austin is coached by Debbie Humphreys. She is 465-210 in her 21st season.
Montana is 0-1 against the Ladyjacks, dropping a 3-1 decision at Iowa State's tournament in 2005.
Scouting New Orleans: The Privateers are 3-0 and coming off a dominating tournament championship at Auburn. UNO swept Mercer, Samford and Auburn, dropping just one game, a 25-23 loss to Samford, along the way.
Junior outside hitter Lindsey Loyd was named the tournament MVP after averaging 4.70 kills per game on .447 hitting. Senior setter Jaci Bayley and senior outside hitter Dobrilla Kovacevic were named all-tournament. Bayley averaged 8.20 assists per game; Kovacevic averaged 4.00 kills per game on .255 hitting.
The Privateers hit .345 as a team over the three tournament matches.
New Orleans went 16-16 in 2007, finishing third in the West Division of the Sun Belt Conference at 10-8. The No. 6 seed Privateers lost to No. 3 Western Kentucky in four games in the quarterfinals of the conference tournament.
UNO is coached by Jozsef Forman. He is 19-16 in his second season at New Orleans. Forman compiled 480 wins coaching professionally in Europe before moving to assistant positions at Baylor and Mississippi State.
Montana is 1-0 against New Orleans, with a 3-0 victory over the Privateers at UConn's tournament in 2000.
Smaller margin for error in shortened matches: The NCAA instituted the 25-point rule for winning games this year after a number of years playing rally scoring to 30. Last weekend's matches were Montana's first experience playing with the shortened games.
"It definitely makes you embrace every point a lot more, which is good," Wagner said. "The teams that are going to be successful will be those that have the ability to remain focused for a longer period of time. You can't afford to be complacent giving up a three- or four-point run here or there."
Montana ties for first at UM Invitational: The Grizzlies were one match away from sweeping their four opponents and claiming the outright title at the Montana Invitational last weekend, but North Dakota State spoiled those plans with a 3-0 victory over Montana in the tournament's final match Saturday night. The loss left Montana, UC Riverside and NDSU with one loss each, with the Grizzlies downing the Highlanders, the Highlanders topping the Bison and the Bison beating the Grizzlies.
The three teams were declared tri-champions, with Gonzaga (1-3) and Bradley (0-3) taking fourth and fifth.
The three tournament champions each had two players on the six-player all-tournament team. North Dakota State was represented by Jennifer Lopez and Brooke VandenBergh, Montana by junior Whitney Hobbs and sophomore Brittney Brown and UC Riverside by Brittney Murrey and Kelly Fink.
Lopez was also named tournament MVP.
The Grizzlies opened with a 3-1 victory over UC Riverside, a match that would prove to be the Highlanders' only loss of the tournament. Sophomore Amy Roberts had a match-high 15 kills and sophomore Jaimie Thibeault finished with 13 kills on .348 hitting.
Montana downed Gonzaga Friday night in four games, exacting a measure of revenge for the Bulldogs' two three-game sweeps of the Grizzlies last season. Thibeault had nine blocks and UM hit .218, the team's highest hitting percentage of the tournament.
After dropping game one to Bradley in the 9 a.m. match Saturday morning, the Grizzlies remained perfect with wins in the next three games to win 3-1. Junior Taryn Wright and redshirt freshman Paige Nash both had a match-high five blocks as Montana out-blocked the Braves 10.0 to 3.0.
The Bison handed Montana its first defeat of the season in the tournament finale, 3-0. NDSU put on a dominant hitting display, finishing with a .436 hitting percentage for the match. Junior Whitney Hobbs and Roberts both finished with 10 kills.
The Grizzlies hit .210 for the tournament and out-blocked their opponents by over half a block (2.13 to 1.47) per game.
Hobbs, Brown named all-tournament: Junior Whitney Hobbs and sophomore Brittney Brown were both named to the all-tournament team at the Montana Invitational. Hobbs averaged 2.67 kills per game on .235 hitting, while Brown led the Grizzlies in digs for the tournament, averaging 3.47 per game.
Hobbs led Montana in kills in both of Saturday's matches.
Brown led the Grizzlies in digs in two of four matches, including a 21-dig performance against Bradley.
Serving up aces: The Grizzlies finished the Montana Invitational with an amazing 34-8 advantage in service aces over their four opponents. Just as remarkable: Even with their aggressive serving, the Griz still committed fewer service errors (28-25) than their opponents.
Montana had an 8-4 edge over UC Riverside, 13-3 over Gonzaga, 3-2 over Bradley and 10-0 over North Dakota State.
The Wright Balance: Junior setter Taryn Wright directed Montana's offense over the weekend, accounting for nearly 85 percent of the team's assists in its four matches. She averaged 10.0 assists per game, totaling 150 in UM's 15 games.
Wright also had a hand in Montana's attacking numbers and defense. The 5-10 Fair Oaks, Calif. native finished with 17 kills (1.13/g) on .250 hitting and finished second on the team with 10 blocks (0.67/g) and third in digs (2.27/g). Wright, who led Montana in service aces as a freshman and sophomore, also added four aces.
Montana (3-1) will face SMU (2-1) at 12:30 p.m. (MT) and Stephen F. Austin (1-2) at 4 p.m. (MT) Friday and New Orleans (3-0) at noon (MT) Saturday.
The Grizzlies are coming off a successful opening weekend, tying for first at the Montana Invitational with a 3-1 record. Montana defeated UC Riverside, Gonzaga and Bradley, all in four games, before dropping their tournament finale to North Dakota State in three games.
"I'm looking forward to going on the road and getting this team up to the task of being able to compete at a high level away from home," Montana coach Jerry Wagner said. "It's going to be a pleasure to get this team back on the court. They work so hard.
"I'm happy with our 3-1 record (at last weekend's tournament). We were able to play in a lot of close games and break through in a majority of them."
Scouting SMU: The Mustangs are 2-1 after finishing second at last weekend's tournament at Baylor. SMU lost in three games to host Baylor in its opener, then came back to down Lamar in four games and Prairie View A&M in three games.
Sophomore Kathryn Wilkerson and freshman Dana Powell, both outside hitters, were named to the all-tournament team. The pair combined to average 5.9 kills per game on .223 hitting.
Junior libero Carly Bergquist, who played at Oregon as a freshman before transferring to SMU, had 18 digs in three matches. She is the sister of Grizzly quarterback Cole Bergquist.
Southern Methodist went 16-15 in 2007, tying for eighth in Conference USA with a 6-10 league record. The No. 9 seed, SMU fell to No. 8 East Carolina in the opening round of its conference tournament.
The Mustangs are coached by Lisa Seifert. She is 181-188 in her 13th season at SMU.
Friday's matchup will be the first between SMU and Montana.
Scouting Stephen F. Austin: The Ladyjacks are 1-2 on the season. After winning a neutral-site match at Lexington, Ky., against Western Carolina Friday, they dropped a pair of matches at Miami of Ohio's tournament on Saturday, falling to both St. Louis and Miami in three games.
Seniors Lauren Railey and Shelly Swendig, both outside hitters, were named to Miami's all-tournament team. Railey is averaging a team-high 3.67 kills per game through three matches, while Swendig is hitting a team-best .321.
SFA went 27-8 in 2007, tying for first in the Southland Conference at 15-1. The Ladyjacks lost the Southland Conference tournament championship match to Texas State in five games.
Stephen F. Austin is coached by Debbie Humphreys. She is 465-210 in her 21st season.
Montana is 0-1 against the Ladyjacks, dropping a 3-1 decision at Iowa State's tournament in 2005.
Scouting New Orleans: The Privateers are 3-0 and coming off a dominating tournament championship at Auburn. UNO swept Mercer, Samford and Auburn, dropping just one game, a 25-23 loss to Samford, along the way.
Junior outside hitter Lindsey Loyd was named the tournament MVP after averaging 4.70 kills per game on .447 hitting. Senior setter Jaci Bayley and senior outside hitter Dobrilla Kovacevic were named all-tournament. Bayley averaged 8.20 assists per game; Kovacevic averaged 4.00 kills per game on .255 hitting.
The Privateers hit .345 as a team over the three tournament matches.
New Orleans went 16-16 in 2007, finishing third in the West Division of the Sun Belt Conference at 10-8. The No. 6 seed Privateers lost to No. 3 Western Kentucky in four games in the quarterfinals of the conference tournament.
UNO is coached by Jozsef Forman. He is 19-16 in his second season at New Orleans. Forman compiled 480 wins coaching professionally in Europe before moving to assistant positions at Baylor and Mississippi State.
Montana is 1-0 against New Orleans, with a 3-0 victory over the Privateers at UConn's tournament in 2000.
Smaller margin for error in shortened matches: The NCAA instituted the 25-point rule for winning games this year after a number of years playing rally scoring to 30. Last weekend's matches were Montana's first experience playing with the shortened games.
"It definitely makes you embrace every point a lot more, which is good," Wagner said. "The teams that are going to be successful will be those that have the ability to remain focused for a longer period of time. You can't afford to be complacent giving up a three- or four-point run here or there."
Montana ties for first at UM Invitational: The Grizzlies were one match away from sweeping their four opponents and claiming the outright title at the Montana Invitational last weekend, but North Dakota State spoiled those plans with a 3-0 victory over Montana in the tournament's final match Saturday night. The loss left Montana, UC Riverside and NDSU with one loss each, with the Grizzlies downing the Highlanders, the Highlanders topping the Bison and the Bison beating the Grizzlies.
The three teams were declared tri-champions, with Gonzaga (1-3) and Bradley (0-3) taking fourth and fifth.
The three tournament champions each had two players on the six-player all-tournament team. North Dakota State was represented by Jennifer Lopez and Brooke VandenBergh, Montana by junior Whitney Hobbs and sophomore Brittney Brown and UC Riverside by Brittney Murrey and Kelly Fink.
Lopez was also named tournament MVP.
The Grizzlies opened with a 3-1 victory over UC Riverside, a match that would prove to be the Highlanders' only loss of the tournament. Sophomore Amy Roberts had a match-high 15 kills and sophomore Jaimie Thibeault finished with 13 kills on .348 hitting.
Montana downed Gonzaga Friday night in four games, exacting a measure of revenge for the Bulldogs' two three-game sweeps of the Grizzlies last season. Thibeault had nine blocks and UM hit .218, the team's highest hitting percentage of the tournament.
After dropping game one to Bradley in the 9 a.m. match Saturday morning, the Grizzlies remained perfect with wins in the next three games to win 3-1. Junior Taryn Wright and redshirt freshman Paige Nash both had a match-high five blocks as Montana out-blocked the Braves 10.0 to 3.0.
The Bison handed Montana its first defeat of the season in the tournament finale, 3-0. NDSU put on a dominant hitting display, finishing with a .436 hitting percentage for the match. Junior Whitney Hobbs and Roberts both finished with 10 kills.
The Grizzlies hit .210 for the tournament and out-blocked their opponents by over half a block (2.13 to 1.47) per game.
Hobbs, Brown named all-tournament: Junior Whitney Hobbs and sophomore Brittney Brown were both named to the all-tournament team at the Montana Invitational. Hobbs averaged 2.67 kills per game on .235 hitting, while Brown led the Grizzlies in digs for the tournament, averaging 3.47 per game.
Hobbs led Montana in kills in both of Saturday's matches.
Brown led the Grizzlies in digs in two of four matches, including a 21-dig performance against Bradley.
Serving up aces: The Grizzlies finished the Montana Invitational with an amazing 34-8 advantage in service aces over their four opponents. Just as remarkable: Even with their aggressive serving, the Griz still committed fewer service errors (28-25) than their opponents.
Montana had an 8-4 edge over UC Riverside, 13-3 over Gonzaga, 3-2 over Bradley and 10-0 over North Dakota State.
The Wright Balance: Junior setter Taryn Wright directed Montana's offense over the weekend, accounting for nearly 85 percent of the team's assists in its four matches. She averaged 10.0 assists per game, totaling 150 in UM's 15 games.
Wright also had a hand in Montana's attacking numbers and defense. The 5-10 Fair Oaks, Calif. native finished with 17 kills (1.13/g) on .250 hitting and finished second on the team with 10 blocks (0.67/g) and third in digs (2.27/g). Wright, who led Montana in service aces as a freshman and sophomore, also added four aces.
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