Sunday, January 31
Missoula, Mont.
2 PM
Montana
1-2, 1-2Big Sky
0
vs
3
Weber State
3-0, 3-0Big Sky
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | Final F |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weber State | 25 | 25 | 25 | 3 |
| Montana | 23 | 20 | 15 | 0 |
Photo by: Todd Goodrich
Wildcats close sets late to earn win over Grizzlies
1/31/2021 4:44:00 PM | Volleyball
MISSOULA, Mont. – In the end, Weber State's experience proved to be too much for Montana on Sunday afternoon, with the Wildcats winning in straight sets (25-23, 25-20, 25-15).
A simple glance at the box score will show a 3-0 defeat for Montana. But while the Grizzlies were unable to take a set off of the Wildcats – a team that won 26 matches a season ago and was picked to finish second in the Big Sky Conference preseason poll – Montana had its opportunities.
Take the first set, for instance, which featured 12 tie scores and five lead changes. The Grizzlies took a 19-18 lead that forced a Weber State timeout, and moments later, after a Sophia Meyers kill, became the first team to 20 points.
For much of the set, Montana played more composed and like the better team. Weber State, though, got two kills, a block and an ace late to take a 23-20 lead, before winning 25-23.
The second set featured 11 tie scores and eight lead changes, and again saw Montana on top late. Freshman setter Carly Anderson had a dump kill, before setting up her teammates Madi Chuhlantseff and Amethyst Harper for strikes, and again the Wildcats were forced to call timeout, this time behind 17-15.
Coming out of the timeout, Weber State would claim the next five points, and 10 of the final 13, to win the set, 25-20.
Across the first two sets, the teams were tied 23 times, with the lead flipping on 13 occasions. Neither team led by more than three points until the final six points of the second set.
"We were right there, but then our resiliency under pressure would break down, and that's going to be our biggest battle this season, and also our biggest measurement of growth," head coach Allison Lawrence said. "You're playing in a moment where the most pressure is applied, against a team that is used to being in championship moments, and until we can learn to play under pressure in those moments, we're going to struggle to finish.
"Right now we're young and inexperienced, but I think we can become wise and experienced."
"The amount of times we're going to point out that we have a young team is going to be infinite," Lawrence said. "When you have an inexperienced team, and a team that doesn't have experience playing together, learning how to manage a match is something you can only learn while playing in matches."
That, even more than the tight sets Montana played on Sunday, was the thing Lawrence was most proud of.
Last week at Idaho State, even in its win over the Bengals, the Grizzlies didn't play particularly well.
"Disorganized, chaotic and really undisciplined," Lawrence labeled the weekend.
The Grizzlies returned to Missoula and had a strong week of practice, focusing on details and individual assignments.
"We looked way more prepared, we felt confident and we played way more polished," Lawrence said of the difference between the two weeks. "People have seen our program grow and progress throughout each season we've been here. Sometimes it's taken most of the season to see those results, but I think we're already doing that this year."
In addition to the two tight set losses, Montana narrowly trailed in most statistical categories. The Grizzlies had five blocks, but the Wildcats had seven. Montana had three service aces, compared to five for Weber State. Same thing with errors (17 to 13) and kills (36 to 42).
Nothing drastic, but small differences across the board added up to the final result.
Along the way, Montana's freshmen excelled. The trio of Anderson, Chuhlantseff and Meyers all started for the third consecutive match, and each was superb.
Meyers, an outside hitter, finished the day with 10 kills and zero errors, hitting .526 (10-0-19).
Last week at Idaho State, in her first collegiate matches, Meyers was an offensive threat, ranking third on the team with 16 kills, but she also made 15 errors. She cleaned things up immensely on Sunday, with zero attack errors.
In the opening set, Meyers recorded five kills on seven attacks, with her swings tying the score at 17-17 and 18-18 before giving the Grizzlies a 20-19 lead.
"I thought all three freshmen played great," Lawrence said. "With Sophia, we got back into practice with her and really tried to build up her confidence that she can swing high against big blocks. Last week, it felt like she was playing to avoid the block, but today she did what experienced players do, and she felt confident attacking the block, and her vision was really good."
She had a kill to give Montana a 14-12 lead in Set 1, and then kept the Grizzlies alive to pull them within a point, 24-23. In the second set, she had a kill during a 3-0 run that put Montana on top 17-15.
Setting Meyers and Chuhlantseff up was Anderson, who recorded 31 assists, plus two blocks and two kills. She helped Montana hit a season-high .190, including an astonishing .414 in the first set (16-4-29).
Montana and Weber State will battle again Monday night in Missoula. The Grizzlies are looking to snap a four-match skid against the Wildcats, while Weber State is looking to stay unbeaten on the season. At 3-0, Weber State is the Big Sky's only undefeated team.
A simple glance at the box score will show a 3-0 defeat for Montana. But while the Grizzlies were unable to take a set off of the Wildcats – a team that won 26 matches a season ago and was picked to finish second in the Big Sky Conference preseason poll – Montana had its opportunities.
Take the first set, for instance, which featured 12 tie scores and five lead changes. The Grizzlies took a 19-18 lead that forced a Weber State timeout, and moments later, after a Sophia Meyers kill, became the first team to 20 points.
For much of the set, Montana played more composed and like the better team. Weber State, though, got two kills, a block and an ace late to take a 23-20 lead, before winning 25-23.
The second set featured 11 tie scores and eight lead changes, and again saw Montana on top late. Freshman setter Carly Anderson had a dump kill, before setting up her teammates Madi Chuhlantseff and Amethyst Harper for strikes, and again the Wildcats were forced to call timeout, this time behind 17-15.
Coming out of the timeout, Weber State would claim the next five points, and 10 of the final 13, to win the set, 25-20.
Across the first two sets, the teams were tied 23 times, with the lead flipping on 13 occasions. Neither team led by more than three points until the final six points of the second set.
"We were right there, but then our resiliency under pressure would break down, and that's going to be our biggest battle this season, and also our biggest measurement of growth," head coach Allison Lawrence said. "You're playing in a moment where the most pressure is applied, against a team that is used to being in championship moments, and until we can learn to play under pressure in those moments, we're going to struggle to finish.
"Right now we're young and inexperienced, but I think we can become wise and experienced."
Montana started three true freshmen for the third straight match. Of the 10 players who saw the court on Sunday, four were not on the team a season ago, and nine weren't playing for the Griz two years ago. Weber State, on the other hand, advanced to the third round of the NIVC postseason tournament in 2019, after coming up two points shy of a Big Sky title.Moreno to Anderson to Harper for the Montana kill!#GrizVB #GoGriz #BigSkyVB pic.twitter.com/AzWHJuE77u
— Montana Griz VB (@MontanaGrizVB) January 31, 2021
"The amount of times we're going to point out that we have a young team is going to be infinite," Lawrence said. "When you have an inexperienced team, and a team that doesn't have experience playing together, learning how to manage a match is something you can only learn while playing in matches."
That, even more than the tight sets Montana played on Sunday, was the thing Lawrence was most proud of.
Last week at Idaho State, even in its win over the Bengals, the Grizzlies didn't play particularly well.
"Disorganized, chaotic and really undisciplined," Lawrence labeled the weekend.
The Grizzlies returned to Missoula and had a strong week of practice, focusing on details and individual assignments.
"We looked way more prepared, we felt confident and we played way more polished," Lawrence said of the difference between the two weeks. "People have seen our program grow and progress throughout each season we've been here. Sometimes it's taken most of the season to see those results, but I think we're already doing that this year."
In addition to the two tight set losses, Montana narrowly trailed in most statistical categories. The Grizzlies had five blocks, but the Wildcats had seven. Montana had three service aces, compared to five for Weber State. Same thing with errors (17 to 13) and kills (36 to 42).
Nothing drastic, but small differences across the board added up to the final result.
Along the way, Montana's freshmen excelled. The trio of Anderson, Chuhlantseff and Meyers all started for the third consecutive match, and each was superb.
Meyers, an outside hitter, finished the day with 10 kills and zero errors, hitting .526 (10-0-19).
Last week at Idaho State, in her first collegiate matches, Meyers was an offensive threat, ranking third on the team with 16 kills, but she also made 15 errors. She cleaned things up immensely on Sunday, with zero attack errors.
In the opening set, Meyers recorded five kills on seven attacks, with her swings tying the score at 17-17 and 18-18 before giving the Grizzlies a 20-19 lead.
"I thought all three freshmen played great," Lawrence said. "With Sophia, we got back into practice with her and really tried to build up her confidence that she can swing high against big blocks. Last week, it felt like she was playing to avoid the block, but today she did what experienced players do, and she felt confident attacking the block, and her vision was really good."
Chuhlantseff was also efficient, recording seven kills on .500 hitting, making just on attack error. Similar to Meyers, Chuhlantseff was good last week vs. Idaho State – recording six kills – but also had five errors. In addition to her seven kills on Sunday, Chuhlantseff also recorded a team-high three blocks.10 KILLS and 0 errors for freshman Sophia Meyers so far in the match!#GrizVB #GoGriz #BigSkyVB pic.twitter.com/GpF59MIP0b
— Montana Griz VB (@MontanaGrizVB) January 31, 2021
She had a kill to give Montana a 14-12 lead in Set 1, and then kept the Grizzlies alive to pull them within a point, 24-23. In the second set, she had a kill during a 3-0 run that put Montana on top 17-15.
Setting Meyers and Chuhlantseff up was Anderson, who recorded 31 assists, plus two blocks and two kills. She helped Montana hit a season-high .190, including an astonishing .414 in the first set (16-4-29).
Montana and Weber State will battle again Monday night in Missoula. The Grizzlies are looking to snap a four-match skid against the Wildcats, while Weber State is looking to stay unbeaten on the season. At 3-0, Weber State is the Big Sky's only undefeated team.
Carly Anderson finding the sweet spot for Montana!#GrizVB #GoGriz #BigSkyVB pic.twitter.com/3xO6ZNAl2S
— Montana Griz VB (@MontanaGrizVB) January 31, 2021
Team Stats
WSU
UM
Kills
42
36
Errors
13
17
Attempts
104
100
Hitting %
.279
.190
Points
54.0
44.0
Assists
35
32
Aces
5
3
Blocks
7.0
5.0
Game Leaders
Kills
10
Aces
0
Blocks
0
Kills
10
Aces
0
Blocks
1
Kills
7
Aces
0
Blocks
3
Kills
4
Aces
0
Blocks
1
Players Mentioned
S
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