Thursday, September 22
Flagstaff, Ariz.
7:30 PM (MT)
Montana
8-5, 1-0Big Sky
3
at
2
Northern Arizona
1-7, 0-1Big Sky
1
2
3
4
5
F
Montana
23
14
25
30
15
3
Northern Arizona
25
25
17
28
7
2
Photo by: Rhianna Kahley / NAU Athletics
Griz complete reverse sweep again, win in Flagstaff for 1st time since 2010
9/22/2022 11:12:00 PM | Volleyball
FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. – Montana opened Big Sky Conference play on Thursday night with a thrilling 3-2 victory at Northern Arizona, completing its second consecutive reverse sweep after initially dropping the first two sets (23-25, 14-25, 25-17, 30-28, 15-7).
NAU, perennially a Big Sky contender and a team that has won more than 80 percent of its home matches over the past decade, has been a tough team for any opponent to beat. Particularly for Montana, though, which had not beat the Lumberjacks at all since 2013 and hadn't won in Flagstaff since 2010.
"We knew we were the underdogs," head coach Allison Lawrence said. "Based off of history, preseason rankings and just the home-court advantage that NAU has and the way the ball moves here at elevation, this is a hard team to play and a hard place to play."
Through two sets, it looked as if the Rolle Activity Center would remain a house of horrors for the Grizzlies.
Montana played well enough offensively to win the first set, but NAU played a touch better, winning 25-23. The Grizzlies were no match for the Lumberjacks in the second set, falling 25-14. NAU took a 4-1 lead early in Set 3 and it looked as if Montana would have a quick trip back to the hotel.
The Grizzlies, who also fell into an 0-2 hole last Saturday at Charleston Southern before completing a reverse sweep to cap their best non-conference record in 17 years, showed that they can be resilient.
With Carly Anderson at the service line, Montana scored four consecutive points to take a 12-11 lead, capped by a big block from junior middle blocker Ellie Scherffius.
NAU briefly tied the score at 12-12 before the Grizzlies scored the next six points, getting kills from Scherffius, outside hitter Paige Clark and opposite hitter Catie Semadeni (twice). Montana led by as many as seven points and finally was able to successful shut down NAU's potent offense, which hit just .116 after hitting .375 combined through the first two frames.
"I think it started with our serving," Lawrence said of Montana's defensive effort. "We served in ways that got them a little more out of system, which allowed us to get more touches on their swings. We came up with some huge digs in big moments, and when we would steal a kill and instead turn that into a transition score, I think it put a lot of pressure on them and loosened us up."
The Lumberjacks scored the first seven points of the fourth set, and, again, it looked as if Montana would throw in the towel.
The Grizzlies, though, fought back to get within a single point by 10-9 (8-2 run) before using a 6-0 scoring run to open up a 22-18 advantage with senior middle blocker Elise Jolly serving. Montana held several set-point opportunities, beginning at 24-21, and then things got wacky.
Semadeni fended it off to tie the score back up at 26-26, starting a string of alternating kills, as the score remained tied at 27-27 and 28-28, before the Grizzlies again retook the lead at 29-28.
Anderson took things into her own hands to finish off the set. The setter dumped the ball over on Montana's second touch, seemingly getting a kill before NAU impressively kept the ball up. With the ball back on Montana's side again, Anderson again dumped the ball over on two, this time reaching the floor to set off a major celebration.
Montana got on the board first with a Sarina Moreno ace and built a 4-1 lead behind kills from Semadeni, Jolly and Jackie Howell. NAU took a timeout and immediately responded, scoring the next three points to tie the shortened set at 4-4.
Then Jolly took over, pounding a kill to the floor. 5-4 Griz.
Then another. 6-4.
And another. 7-4.
On the next point, she and Anderson teamed up for a huge stuff, giving the Grizzlies an 8-4 advantage as the teams switched sides.
"I'm so proud of this team, and tonight is just a huge testament to the belief they have in themselves," Lawrence said. "We had our moments of struggle, but ultimately, we were so eager, individually, to go be playmakers."
Jolly came up biggest in the fifth set, where she totaled four of her kills, but Lawrence was particularly impressed by Semadeni, who had her best performance of the season.
"With the preseason she had, we knew that teams might key in on Ellie (Scherffius, who ranks second in the Big Sky with a .355 hitting percentage)," Lawrence said. "They did, and I thought Catie did a phenomenal job of scoring in huge moments for us and helping lift some of that weight.
"I think when Catie got kills, it just gave confidence to so many other hitters, as well. They fed off of her."
As strong as NAU started offensively, hitting .395 in Set 1 and .353 in Set 2, the Grizzlies ended up out-hitting the Lumberjacks for the match. NAU hit just .116 in Set 3, .153 in Set 4 and -.100 in the fifth set.
Lawrence couldn't have been prouder of Montana's back-row defenders, who out-dug NAU by 10 (83 to 73). Moreno totaled 21 digs, Howell added 17, junior Sarah Ashley recorded 14 and freshman Lexi Batezel chipped in with seven. All four came up huge in crucial moments, particularly in a tight fourth set.
"Sarina played great, Jackie had some monster kills at really big moments, Sarah was really, really good – particularly in the fourth set – and I thought Lexi did some things that saved points for us," Lawrence said. "Our defensive effort was incredible. That core of passers won the match for us."
Montana, which has played its last 10 matches on the road – and will again go on the road the next two weeks – gets a brief stopover in Missoula, hosting Idaho on Saturday night, part of the University's Homecoming weekend. Griz Athletics is offering a buy-one-get-one-free ticket special (online only, promo code: BOGO).
"This team is so fun to be around," Lawrence said. "We've been on the road for a long time, but our time together is so much fun. This conference is really deep and tough, and we have to assume we're going to be in situations like we were tonight, playing five sets, fighting off set points, battling."
Lawrence isn't wrong. In addition to Montana's upset win, also on Thursday, Idaho State – picked last in the preseason coaches' poll – beat Northern Colorado, the defending champs and preseason favorites.
"But that's where we want to be," Lawrence continued. "We're finding joy in being in these moments because of what they've built and are continuing to build."
As strong as NAU started offensively, hitting .395 in Set 1 and .353 in Set 2, the Grizzlies ended up out-hitting the Lumberjacks for the match. NAU hit just .116 in Set 3, .153 in Set 4 and -.100 in the fifth set.
Lawrence couldn't have been prouder of Montana's back-row defenders, who out-dug NAU by 10 (83 to 73). Moreno totaled 21 digs, Howell added 17, junior Sarah Ashley recorded 14 and freshman Lexi Batezel chipped in with seven. All four came up huge in crucial moments, particularly in a tight fourth set.
"Sarina played great, Jackie had some monster kills at really big moments, Sarah was really, really good – particularly in the fourth set – and I thought Lexi did some things that saved points for us," Lawrence said. "Our defensive effort was incredible. That core of passers won the match for us."
Montana, which has played its last 10 matches on the road – and will again go on the road the next two weeks – gets a brief stopover in Missoula, hosting Idaho on Saturday night, part of the University's Homecoming weekend. Griz Athletics is offering a buy-one-get-one-free ticket special (online only).
"This team is so fun to be around," Lawrence said. "We've been on the road for a long time, but our time together is so much fun. This conference is really deep and tough, and we have to assume we're going to be in situations like we were tonight, playing five sets, fighting off set points, battling."
Lawrence isn't wrong. In addition to Montana's upset win, also on Thursday, Idaho State – picked last in the preseason coaches' poll – beat Northern Colorado, the defending champs and preseason favorites.
"But that's where we want to be," Lawrence continued. "We're finding joy in being in these moments because of what they've built and are continuing to build."
NAU, perennially a Big Sky contender and a team that has won more than 80 percent of its home matches over the past decade, has been a tough team for any opponent to beat. Particularly for Montana, though, which had not beat the Lumberjacks at all since 2013 and hadn't won in Flagstaff since 2010.
"We knew we were the underdogs," head coach Allison Lawrence said. "Based off of history, preseason rankings and just the home-court advantage that NAU has and the way the ball moves here at elevation, this is a hard team to play and a hard place to play."
Through two sets, it looked as if the Rolle Activity Center would remain a house of horrors for the Grizzlies.
Montana played well enough offensively to win the first set, but NAU played a touch better, winning 25-23. The Grizzlies were no match for the Lumberjacks in the second set, falling 25-14. NAU took a 4-1 lead early in Set 3 and it looked as if Montana would have a quick trip back to the hotel.
The Grizzlies, who also fell into an 0-2 hole last Saturday at Charleston Southern before completing a reverse sweep to cap their best non-conference record in 17 years, showed that they can be resilient.
With Carly Anderson at the service line, Montana scored four consecutive points to take a 12-11 lead, capped by a big block from junior middle blocker Ellie Scherffius.
NAU briefly tied the score at 12-12 before the Grizzlies scored the next six points, getting kills from Scherffius, outside hitter Paige Clark and opposite hitter Catie Semadeni (twice). Montana led by as many as seven points and finally was able to successful shut down NAU's potent offense, which hit just .116 after hitting .375 combined through the first two frames.
"I think it started with our serving," Lawrence said of Montana's defensive effort. "We served in ways that got them a little more out of system, which allowed us to get more touches on their swings. We came up with some huge digs in big moments, and when we would steal a kill and instead turn that into a transition score, I think it put a lot of pressure on them and loosened us up."
The Lumberjacks scored the first seven points of the fourth set, and, again, it looked as if Montana would throw in the towel.
The Grizzlies, though, fought back to get within a single point by 10-9 (8-2 run) before using a 6-0 scoring run to open up a 22-18 advantage with senior middle blocker Elise Jolly serving. Montana held several set-point opportunities, beginning at 24-21, and then things got wacky.
Two NAU kills and a block tied the score at 24-24. Montana regained the lead, 25-24, on an NAU service error, but then gave up the next two points and faced match point.Grizzly block!! Griz now lead 21-18 in 3rd pic.twitter.com/VLSZ9Hd20u
— Montana Griz Volleyball (@MontanaGrizVB) September 23, 2022
Semadeni fended it off to tie the score back up at 26-26, starting a string of alternating kills, as the score remained tied at 27-27 and 28-28, before the Grizzlies again retook the lead at 29-28.
Anderson took things into her own hands to finish off the set. The setter dumped the ball over on Montana's second touch, seemingly getting a kill before NAU impressively kept the ball up. With the ball back on Montana's side again, Anderson again dumped the ball over on two, this time reaching the floor to set off a major celebration.
"We went into the match with a good belief, just coming off of a strong preseason, but I think when we went on that run in Set 4, and then came back to win a wild fourth set, it gave us some confidence," Lawrence said. "It helped us realize that we could put enough pressure on this team and win. I felt like I saw us decide to go for it and play free."Griz win 4th set!!! pic.twitter.com/HNW01CHC6N
— Montana Griz Volleyball (@MontanaGrizVB) September 23, 2022
Montana got on the board first with a Sarina Moreno ace and built a 4-1 lead behind kills from Semadeni, Jolly and Jackie Howell. NAU took a timeout and immediately responded, scoring the next three points to tie the shortened set at 4-4.
Then Jolly took over, pounding a kill to the floor. 5-4 Griz.
Then another. 6-4.
And another. 7-4.
On the next point, she and Anderson teamed up for a huge stuff, giving the Grizzlies an 8-4 advantage as the teams switched sides.
The Grizzlies' run extended to 8-0, as Montana got back-to-back kills from Clark before NAU fell apart, with Montana's final five points coming off Lumberjack attack errors.Great time for a BIG BLOCK by Jolly!! pic.twitter.com/7GRsMvSL6W
— Montana Griz Volleyball (@MontanaGrizVB) September 23, 2022
"I'm so proud of this team, and tonight is just a huge testament to the belief they have in themselves," Lawrence said. "We had our moments of struggle, but ultimately, we were so eager, individually, to go be playmakers."
The list of individual accolades is lengthy, as several Grizzlies played a part in the win. Clark led the Grizzlies with 19 kills, Jolly had 15 kills and four blocks and Semadeni totaled 14 kills on .444 hitting. One match after recording a career-high 58 assists, Anderson – the Big Sky Conference Player of the Week – totaled 54, in addition to four kills and three blocks.GRIZ WIN the hard-fought battle!!! 💪 🏐 pic.twitter.com/E1V36s0Gs9
— Montana Griz Volleyball (@MontanaGrizVB) September 23, 2022
Jolly came up biggest in the fifth set, where she totaled four of her kills, but Lawrence was particularly impressed by Semadeni, who had her best performance of the season.
"With the preseason she had, we knew that teams might key in on Ellie (Scherffius, who ranks second in the Big Sky with a .355 hitting percentage)," Lawrence said. "They did, and I thought Catie did a phenomenal job of scoring in huge moments for us and helping lift some of that weight.
"I think when Catie got kills, it just gave confidence to so many other hitters, as well. They fed off of her."
Semadeni swinging hard in the 2nd set!! 🐻 pic.twitter.com/2A5mLUJseb
— Montana Griz Volleyball (@MontanaGrizVB) September 23, 2022
As strong as NAU started offensively, hitting .395 in Set 1 and .353 in Set 2, the Grizzlies ended up out-hitting the Lumberjacks for the match. NAU hit just .116 in Set 3, .153 in Set 4 and -.100 in the fifth set.
Lawrence couldn't have been prouder of Montana's back-row defenders, who out-dug NAU by 10 (83 to 73). Moreno totaled 21 digs, Howell added 17, junior Sarah Ashley recorded 14 and freshman Lexi Batezel chipped in with seven. All four came up huge in crucial moments, particularly in a tight fourth set.
"Sarina played great, Jackie had some monster kills at really big moments, Sarah was really, really good – particularly in the fourth set – and I thought Lexi did some things that saved points for us," Lawrence said. "Our defensive effort was incredible. That core of passers won the match for us."
Montana, which has played its last 10 matches on the road – and will again go on the road the next two weeks – gets a brief stopover in Missoula, hosting Idaho on Saturday night, part of the University's Homecoming weekend. Griz Athletics is offering a buy-one-get-one-free ticket special (online only, promo code: BOGO).
"This team is so fun to be around," Lawrence said. "We've been on the road for a long time, but our time together is so much fun. This conference is really deep and tough, and we have to assume we're going to be in situations like we were tonight, playing five sets, fighting off set points, battling."
Lawrence isn't wrong. In addition to Montana's upset win, also on Thursday, Idaho State – picked last in the preseason coaches' poll – beat Northern Colorado, the defending champs and preseason favorites.
"But that's where we want to be," Lawrence continued. "We're finding joy in being in these moments because of what they've built and are continuing to build."
As strong as NAU started offensively, hitting .395 in Set 1 and .353 in Set 2, the Grizzlies ended up out-hitting the Lumberjacks for the match. NAU hit just .116 in Set 3, .153 in Set 4 and -.100 in the fifth set.
Lawrence couldn't have been prouder of Montana's back-row defenders, who out-dug NAU by 10 (83 to 73). Moreno totaled 21 digs, Howell added 17, junior Sarah Ashley recorded 14 and freshman Lexi Batezel chipped in with seven. All four came up huge in crucial moments, particularly in a tight fourth set.
"Sarina played great, Jackie had some monster kills at really big moments, Sarah was really, really good – particularly in the fourth set – and I thought Lexi did some things that saved points for us," Lawrence said. "Our defensive effort was incredible. That core of passers won the match for us."
Montana, which has played its last 10 matches on the road – and will again go on the road the next two weeks – gets a brief stopover in Missoula, hosting Idaho on Saturday night, part of the University's Homecoming weekend. Griz Athletics is offering a buy-one-get-one-free ticket special (online only).
"This team is so fun to be around," Lawrence said. "We've been on the road for a long time, but our time together is so much fun. This conference is really deep and tough, and we have to assume we're going to be in situations like we were tonight, playing five sets, fighting off set points, battling."
Lawrence isn't wrong. In addition to Montana's upset win, also on Thursday, Idaho State – picked last in the preseason coaches' poll – beat Northern Colorado, the defending champs and preseason favorites.
"But that's where we want to be," Lawrence continued. "We're finding joy in being in these moments because of what they've built and are continuing to build."
Clark coming alive in the 1st set! pic.twitter.com/ybh10tbzk9
— Montana Griz Volleyball (@MontanaGrizVB) September 23, 2022
Elise Jolly with the kill!! pic.twitter.com/fXLeuB32fV
— Montana Griz Volleyball (@MontanaGrizVB) September 23, 2022
Team Stats
MON
NAU
Kills
65
65
Errors
24
26
Attempts
181
194
Hitting %
.227
.201
Points
77.0
79.0
Assists
63
59
Aces
4
5
Blocks
8.0
9.0
Game Leaders
Kills-Aces-Blocks
Kills
19
Aces
1
Blocks
2
Kills
15
Aces
1
Blocks
4
Kills
14
Aces
0
Blocks
1
Kills
7
Aces
1
Blocks
0
Players Mentioned
S
/ Volleyball
OH
/ Volleyball
DS
/ VolleyballOH
/ VolleyballOH
/ VolleyballOH/MB
/ Volleyball
DS
/ Volleyball
MB
/ Volleyball
OH
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