Thursday, September 14
Boise, Idaho
4 PM
Montana
4-6,0-0Big Sky
3
vs
1
South Dakota State
2-8,0-0Summit League
1
2
3
4
F
South Dakota St.
19
24
25
18
1
Montana
25
26
21
25
3
Photo by: © Derek Johnson 2023
Montana keeps momentum rolling with four-set win
9/14/2023 6:52:00 PM | Volleyball
The Montana volleyball team opened the Boise State Classic with a four-set win over South Dakota State on Thursday evening. It's the third win in the last four matches for a Montana team that has momentum on its side with Big Sky play less than a week away.
The Grizzlies looked in control in every facet of the game in the four-set win (25-19, 26-24, 21-25, 25-18) and led the entire way through two of the three set wins. They performed well as a team together, hitting .267 with 59 kills while also holding the Jackrabbits to just 47 kills.
Head coach Allison Lawrence talked with her team following a 2-1 weekend in North Dakota about cleaning up the little mistakes. Small errors were holding Montana back from its full potential, but she knew that they were fixable things. On Thursday, her team played its cleanest match of the year and looked the better team all the way through.
"We talked in the locker room after the match about just how many things showed up that we had talked about after last weekend," Lawrence said. "Just details that we've been trying to hone in on and they really showed up in all phases of the game."
Paige Clark had a performance that reminded you exactly why she was named First Team All-Big Sky last year. She had a season-high 22 kills, averaging 5.5 per set and doing it all on .311 hitting. It's the sixth time in Clark's career that she has reached the 20-kill mark in a single match.
And it didn't just come on the offensive side. Clark also added 13 digs which tied for the most on the team. She now has four straight double-doubles.
"I think Paige was really in rhythm and the way that she was getting her feet to the ball, and they kind of gave us some cross-court that she was able to hammer," Lawrence said. "I think once she loosened up, she was the aggressor from there."
Alexis Batezel had one of her best performances of the season as the Grizzly libero, serving it well and also making all the little plays defensively. She had 13 digs and chased down several balls that looked well out of reach. Her energy helped keep Montana's momentum rolling.
She also had two aces and helped Montana to a couple of big runs while at the service line.
"I think her serving tonight was the best that it has been all season. She has fought to put herself in a mentality at the service line where she is in control, and I think she found that and has kept pushing," Lawrence said. "She made several big hustle plays that I think swung the momentum in our favor so much so that she influenced how the match felt in a really big way that doesn't always come through in the stats."
Lawrence couldn't have asked for a better start out of her team. The Grizzlies raced out to an 8-1 lead in a set that would see zero ties or lead changes. South Dakota State pulled close on a couple of occasions, but Montana saw out a 25-19 win.
The early parts of the match saw plenty of errors from the Jackrabbits. Montana's first four points of the match all came off SDSU errors. The serving of Carly Anderson certainly contributed to that.
Montana also had a big contribution early from Paige Clark once the offense finally had some chances to attack. SDSSU would get things rolling and cut the lead down to two points at 13-11, but Clark ripped her fourth kill in five swings to bump it back up to a three-point advantage.
The Grizzlies had a 3-0 run to make it 18-12. South Dakota State had to take a timeout with Montana outhitting them .421-to-.136 in the late stages. The set wasn't as close as the final score would suggest, either. SDSU put together a four-point run late to cut into the Grizzly cushion, but they would still see out a six-point set win.
Madi Chuhlantseff scored the final point of the set for Montana on her fourth kill. She hit well over .400 in the opener and would end the night with nine kills.
The second set of the match followed nearly the exact opposite pattern as that of the first. It is only possible to be tied 23 times during a regulation set to 25, and Montana and South Dakota State did their best to reach that number.
The lead changed hands 18 times in the second and neither team held more than a two-point advantage. The lead would change hands 11 times total, but the one that mattered came at the very end in favor of Montana.
South Dakota State had a chance to take an advantage early as they were outhitting Montana .429-to-.000 after the first 12 points. But after an ace from Sarah Ashley on the 12th point, the teams were exactly even at 6-6.
The ace was part of the longest rally of the set for either side as the Grizzlies scored four straight points to take an 8-6 lead. The two teams then went back and forth, exchanging one-point leads and ties throughout the middle of the set.
The Griz finally put together another rally, this time three straight kills from three different players, to make it 19-17. It was the first multi-point lead for either side since the 8-6 mark.
It didn't last for long, as a tough service game from the Jackrabbits led to back-to-back aces and a 21-20 SDSU lead. Montana took a timeout, but the momentum stayed with South Dakota State as they extended the scoring rally to four straight points and took just their second multi-point lead of the match at 22-20.
Montana had the answer. They went on a 3-0 run of their own to take a 23-22 lead, the 11th lead change of the set. Catie Semadeni made it 24-22 with Montana's fourth straight point to get them just one away, but SDSU would force yet another tie at 24-all.
Chuhlantseff had a nice attack up the middle to make it 25-24, and Clark ended it at the service line with a bullet that fell for an ace. Montana's offense rolled in the set, as the Grizzlies hit .290 with 16 kills. Carly Anderson averaged 11.5 assists through the first two sets, and also tacked on a pair of kills in the second.
The Grizzlies never flinched in a set that carried with it plenty of pressure situations. They fell in two similar sets last week to North Dakota, but were able to stay calm and get the eventual winner.
"I think that was a reflection of our tough preseason," Lawrence said of the finish. "I think we've just kind of relaxed into tight matches and into stress, which is exactly what we wanted from this schedule is to feel like we're really comfortable being in pressure moments. I loved our responses and loved how composed we were. I thought the poise was really good."
If the first set was all Montana, and the second set was a coin flip, then it made sense that SDSU may swing the momentum in their favor in the third. It certainly looked that way early, as the Jackrabbits jumped out to a 6-1 lead in fighting to extend the match.
They held that lead for a long period, but a 4-0 Grizzly run with Clark at the service line cut it all the way down to 14-13. The play then started to resemble the second set. The Grizzlies tied it up at 15-all, and then the teams were tied again at 16, and 17, and 19.
A great serve from Kremer that led to a poor reception by South Dakota State put the ball on a tee for Clark to put away to give Montana its first lead. A 3-0 scoring run put the Griz up 19-17 and had them thinking of a sweep.
Two points to SDSU were followed by two more from Montana on kills from Scherffius and Clark had Montana up 21-19, but the Jackrabbits ran away from there. South Dakota State scored the final six points of the set to extend the match. Montana had just nine kills in the third compared to 17 for SDSU.
Montana returned to their first set form in the fourth, putting away any doubts that the match would go five sets early. The teams were tied twice in the first four points, but Montana would take the lead for good with a 6-0 run thanks to great play from Clark and Kremer with two kills each.
The lead would grow as large as nine points for Montana, who hit .311 in the closing set. South Dakota State made it a bit interesting down the stretch with a 3-0 run to cut the lead to 22-18 and force a Montana timeout.
Out of the timeout, Lawrence put the closing stretch in the hands of her top playmaker in Clark. She didn't disappoint. Clark blasted three straight kills to seal the win and bring her match total to a season-high 22.
She and Kremer came up clutch time and time again for Montana. The Grizzlies have had plenty of stretches this year on the wrong end of a scoring rally. In those matches, they couldn't find a consistent answer to get them out of a tight spot.
The consistency of Clark (.311 hitting) and Kremer (13 kills on .303) gave Montana an answer any time that they needed it on Thursday.
"I think after last weekend where we had big swings in consistency, with the looks we were getting on the left I felt like at any moment they were able to be physical and get a good look," Lawrence said. "It was fun to see them find their rhythm together, too."
Carly Anderson continued her great start to the season with 46 assists (11.5 per set) and just missed out on a double-double with nine digs. Anderson also had four kills as she continues to stay involved in the attack as well.
The two middles Madi Chuhlantseff (9 kills on .208 hitting) and Ellie Scherffius (7 kills on .462 hitting) had an efficient day, while Sarah Ashley and Maddie Pyles passed well in defensive roles.
At the midway point of a grueling non-conference schedule, with Montana sitting at 1-5 overall, it looked like they may have to just force their way through the end of the preseason. Now, the entire tone of the season seems to have shifted as Montana continues to pickup momentum with Big Sky play starting in just six day with a home match against Weber State.
"It feels really good. I think going into this preseason schedule we knew momentum would be hard to come by and we knew it was only going to be generated by an immense amount of hard work and perseverance," Lawrence said. "I love that we are seeing some reward for stepping up and wanting that challenge. I'm really proud of them."
Before Montana makes it to Weber State on Wednesday, they will have two more matches at the Boise State Classic. They return to action tomorrow against a Loyola Marymount team that is currently receiving votes to be ranked in the top 25. The match will begin at 4:00 p.m.
Montana closes the non-conference schedule against host Boise State at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday afternoon.
The Grizzlies looked in control in every facet of the game in the four-set win (25-19, 26-24, 21-25, 25-18) and led the entire way through two of the three set wins. They performed well as a team together, hitting .267 with 59 kills while also holding the Jackrabbits to just 47 kills.
Head coach Allison Lawrence talked with her team following a 2-1 weekend in North Dakota about cleaning up the little mistakes. Small errors were holding Montana back from its full potential, but she knew that they were fixable things. On Thursday, her team played its cleanest match of the year and looked the better team all the way through.
"We talked in the locker room after the match about just how many things showed up that we had talked about after last weekend," Lawrence said. "Just details that we've been trying to hone in on and they really showed up in all phases of the game."
Paige Clark had a performance that reminded you exactly why she was named First Team All-Big Sky last year. She had a season-high 22 kills, averaging 5.5 per set and doing it all on .311 hitting. It's the sixth time in Clark's career that she has reached the 20-kill mark in a single match.
And it didn't just come on the offensive side. Clark also added 13 digs which tied for the most on the team. She now has four straight double-doubles.
"I think Paige was really in rhythm and the way that she was getting her feet to the ball, and they kind of gave us some cross-court that she was able to hammer," Lawrence said. "I think once she loosened up, she was the aggressor from there."
Alexis Batezel had one of her best performances of the season as the Grizzly libero, serving it well and also making all the little plays defensively. She had 13 digs and chased down several balls that looked well out of reach. Her energy helped keep Montana's momentum rolling.
She also had two aces and helped Montana to a couple of big runs while at the service line.
"I think her serving tonight was the best that it has been all season. She has fought to put herself in a mentality at the service line where she is in control, and I think she found that and has kept pushing," Lawrence said. "She made several big hustle plays that I think swung the momentum in our favor so much so that she influenced how the match felt in a really big way that doesn't always come through in the stats."
Lawrence couldn't have asked for a better start out of her team. The Grizzlies raced out to an 8-1 lead in a set that would see zero ties or lead changes. South Dakota State pulled close on a couple of occasions, but Montana saw out a 25-19 win.
The early parts of the match saw plenty of errors from the Jackrabbits. Montana's first four points of the match all came off SDSU errors. The serving of Carly Anderson certainly contributed to that.
Montana also had a big contribution early from Paige Clark once the offense finally had some chances to attack. SDSSU would get things rolling and cut the lead down to two points at 13-11, but Clark ripped her fourth kill in five swings to bump it back up to a three-point advantage.
The Grizzlies had a 3-0 run to make it 18-12. South Dakota State had to take a timeout with Montana outhitting them .421-to-.136 in the late stages. The set wasn't as close as the final score would suggest, either. SDSU put together a four-point run late to cut into the Grizzly cushion, but they would still see out a six-point set win.
Madi Chuhlantseff scored the final point of the set for Montana on her fourth kill. She hit well over .400 in the opener and would end the night with nine kills.
The second set of the match followed nearly the exact opposite pattern as that of the first. It is only possible to be tied 23 times during a regulation set to 25, and Montana and South Dakota State did their best to reach that number.
The lead changed hands 18 times in the second and neither team held more than a two-point advantage. The lead would change hands 11 times total, but the one that mattered came at the very end in favor of Montana.
South Dakota State had a chance to take an advantage early as they were outhitting Montana .429-to-.000 after the first 12 points. But after an ace from Sarah Ashley on the 12th point, the teams were exactly even at 6-6.
The ace was part of the longest rally of the set for either side as the Grizzlies scored four straight points to take an 8-6 lead. The two teams then went back and forth, exchanging one-point leads and ties throughout the middle of the set.
The Griz finally put together another rally, this time three straight kills from three different players, to make it 19-17. It was the first multi-point lead for either side since the 8-6 mark.
There have already been 15 ties and 9 lead changes in the second set, and Ellie Scherffius adds another to give the advantage back to Montana!#GrizVB | #BigSkyVB | #GoGriz pic.twitter.com/i7R5SFQ5BR
— Montana Griz Volleyball (@MontanaGrizVB) September 14, 2023
It didn't last for long, as a tough service game from the Jackrabbits led to back-to-back aces and a 21-20 SDSU lead. Montana took a timeout, but the momentum stayed with South Dakota State as they extended the scoring rally to four straight points and took just their second multi-point lead of the match at 22-20.
Montana had the answer. They went on a 3-0 run of their own to take a 23-22 lead, the 11th lead change of the set. Catie Semadeni made it 24-22 with Montana's fourth straight point to get them just one away, but SDSU would force yet another tie at 24-all.
Chuhlantseff had a nice attack up the middle to make it 25-24, and Clark ended it at the service line with a bullet that fell for an ace. Montana's offense rolled in the set, as the Grizzlies hit .290 with 16 kills. Carly Anderson averaged 11.5 assists through the first two sets, and also tacked on a pair of kills in the second.
The Grizzlies never flinched in a set that carried with it plenty of pressure situations. They fell in two similar sets last week to North Dakota, but were able to stay calm and get the eventual winner.
"I think that was a reflection of our tough preseason," Lawrence said of the finish. "I think we've just kind of relaxed into tight matches and into stress, which is exactly what we wanted from this schedule is to feel like we're really comfortable being in pressure moments. I loved our responses and loved how composed we were. I thought the poise was really good."
If the first set was all Montana, and the second set was a coin flip, then it made sense that SDSU may swing the momentum in their favor in the third. It certainly looked that way early, as the Jackrabbits jumped out to a 6-1 lead in fighting to extend the match.
They held that lead for a long period, but a 4-0 Grizzly run with Clark at the service line cut it all the way down to 14-13. The play then started to resemble the second set. The Grizzlies tied it up at 15-all, and then the teams were tied again at 16, and 17, and 19.
Maddie Kremer on an 🏝️ but she delivers with a solo block! SDSU have led the entire third set, but Montana are making a push.#GrizVB | #BigSkyVB | #GoGriz pic.twitter.com/5KpdtJWgu9
— Montana Griz Volleyball (@MontanaGrizVB) September 14, 2023
A great serve from Kremer that led to a poor reception by South Dakota State put the ball on a tee for Clark to put away to give Montana its first lead. A 3-0 scoring run put the Griz up 19-17 and had them thinking of a sweep.
Two points to SDSU were followed by two more from Montana on kills from Scherffius and Clark had Montana up 21-19, but the Jackrabbits ran away from there. South Dakota State scored the final six points of the set to extend the match. Montana had just nine kills in the third compared to 17 for SDSU.
Montana returned to their first set form in the fourth, putting away any doubts that the match would go five sets early. The teams were tied twice in the first four points, but Montana would take the lead for good with a 6-0 run thanks to great play from Clark and Kremer with two kills each.
The lead would grow as large as nine points for Montana, who hit .311 in the closing set. South Dakota State made it a bit interesting down the stretch with a 3-0 run to cut the lead to 22-18 and force a Montana timeout.
Out of the timeout, Lawrence put the closing stretch in the hands of her top playmaker in Clark. She didn't disappoint. Clark blasted three straight kills to seal the win and bring her match total to a season-high 22.
Paige Clark ends it on a 3-0 run by herself! The junior had a season-high 22 kills on .311 hitting in the win.#GrizVB | #BigSkyVB | #GoGriz pic.twitter.com/wlvwWs1RCU
— Montana Griz Volleyball (@MontanaGrizVB) September 15, 2023
She and Kremer came up clutch time and time again for Montana. The Grizzlies have had plenty of stretches this year on the wrong end of a scoring rally. In those matches, they couldn't find a consistent answer to get them out of a tight spot.
The consistency of Clark (.311 hitting) and Kremer (13 kills on .303) gave Montana an answer any time that they needed it on Thursday.
"I think after last weekend where we had big swings in consistency, with the looks we were getting on the left I felt like at any moment they were able to be physical and get a good look," Lawrence said. "It was fun to see them find their rhythm together, too."
Carly Anderson continued her great start to the season with 46 assists (11.5 per set) and just missed out on a double-double with nine digs. Anderson also had four kills as she continues to stay involved in the attack as well.
The two middles Madi Chuhlantseff (9 kills on .208 hitting) and Ellie Scherffius (7 kills on .462 hitting) had an efficient day, while Sarah Ashley and Maddie Pyles passed well in defensive roles.
At the midway point of a grueling non-conference schedule, with Montana sitting at 1-5 overall, it looked like they may have to just force their way through the end of the preseason. Now, the entire tone of the season seems to have shifted as Montana continues to pickup momentum with Big Sky play starting in just six day with a home match against Weber State.
"It feels really good. I think going into this preseason schedule we knew momentum would be hard to come by and we knew it was only going to be generated by an immense amount of hard work and perseverance," Lawrence said. "I love that we are seeing some reward for stepping up and wanting that challenge. I'm really proud of them."
Before Montana makes it to Weber State on Wednesday, they will have two more matches at the Boise State Classic. They return to action tomorrow against a Loyola Marymount team that is currently receiving votes to be ranked in the top 25. The match will begin at 4:00 p.m.
Montana closes the non-conference schedule against host Boise State at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday afternoon.
Team Stats
SDSU
Mont
Kills
47
59
Errors
19
20
Attempts
133
146
Hitting %
.211
.267
Points
63.0
69.0
Assists
45
55
Aces
10
5
Blocks
6
5
Game Leaders
Kills
22
Aces
1
Blocks
0
Kills
13
Aces
0
Blocks
2
Kills
9
Aces
0
Blocks
1
Kills
7
Aces
0
Blocks
3
Players Mentioned
S
/ Volleyball
DS
/ Volleyball
DS
/ Volleyball
MB
/ Volleyball
OH
/ Volleyball
OH
/ Volleyball
OH
/ Volleyball
MB
/ Volleyball
OPP
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