Griz offense explodes in sweep of Eagles

Saturday, September 23

Cheney, Wash.

3 PM (MT)

Montana

5-9,1-1Big Sky

Eastern Washington

6-8,0-2Big Sky

Montana

Eastern Wash.

Photo by: Bridget Hills/EWU

9/23/2023 5:49:00 PM | Volleyball

Box Score

By: Montana Sports Information

Montana volleyball delivered a big message in Cheney, Wash. on Saturday afternoon with a sweep against the Eastern Washington Eagles. The Grizzlies exploded on offense behind a career-best performance from Maddie Kremer that led to a season-high .303 hitting percentage for Montana.

The Grizzlies trailed for just five total points on the day, dominating the host Eagles to win for the second straight year in Cheney. It's the first time since 1994-95 that Montana have won consecutive away matches against the Eagles.

It certainly wasn't a must win for Montana, but with a difficult schedule upcoming it felt important to get a win on the board. Head coach Allison Lawrence was pleased with how the team responded on Saturday.

"It feels amazing. I think our athletes really were the aggressors and dominated that match," Lawrence said. "They had a great mindset, so it was really fun to watch them play."

Kremer picked up nearly half of her 15 kills in the opening set. She set the tone for the Grizzly offense, hitting .500 in the opening set. She hit .286 in the match, making it the best attacking game of her career. She also had 15 kills against DePaul earlier this year.

"She was on fire. And a lot of those were from bump sets and high balls off the net. She was just so terminal. It was really cool to see."

Plenty of others joined in on the offensive outburst. Paige Clark had 10 kills on .240 hitting to reach double figure kills in a match for the 10^th time this year. Madi Chuhlantseff had eight kills on .533 hitting. She did not commit a single error in her 15 attacking attempts.

The attacking numbers stand out for Montana, but it was all set up by a good passing and receiving game. Alexis Batezel averaged over six digs per set and her clean passing all match long helped set up the Grizzly offense.

Then, of course, there is the play of Carly Anderson. The senior setter had 28 assissts and a pair of kills on just three attempts. Anderson setting a good game and Montana having options thanks to solid passing led to the offense just clicking into place.

"I really think we were just smart in the air and we made great decisions," Lawrence said. "We were just really in rhythm with each other. It was just clicking from everyone and Carly kept the tempo so consistent that I feel like whenever we passed in system we were just so high scoring."

The Grizzly offense stole the show but Montana was good defensively as well. They outdug EWU 48-35 and limited the Eagles to .183 hitting. Batezel had twice as many digs as the next Grizzly with 19 in the match, getting to nearly every ball hit in her direction.

"I think Lexi played really, really well and controlled first contact so well and got us in rhythm," Lawrence said." She is a huge part of why that attack percentage is so high."

The offense had its best performance in the opening set, where Montana would control the action. Chuhlantseff provided a good start for Montana with three kills on her first five swings. The Grizzlies would go on a 4-0 run to take a 9-6 lead early.

We're under way in Cheney and Madi Chuhlantseff starts us off with a kill! #GrizVB | #BigSkyVB | #GoGriz pic.twitter.com/faG69BsYIe
— Montana Griz Volleyball (@MontanaGrizVB) September 23, 2023

They reeled off four more points to really seize control of the set with a a 13-8 lead. Eastern Washington's defense didn't have an answer for the Grizzly attackers. Montana had eight kills and just a single error for a .538 team hitting percentage early on.

It wasn't just a terminal offense that helped build the lead, however. Eastern Washington responded and got back within three points at 22-19. On the following point, Montana's defense kept it alive for a long, extended rally that was finally put away by Maddie Kremer.

They'd close it out for the 25-20 win. It was arguably the best set of Kremer's career, as the junior had seven kills on .500 hitting in the first set. Montana as a team hit .467 in the first set with 15 kills and just a single error.

In the second set they started to open it up after trailing 5-4 out of the gates. They scored five straight to take a 9-5 lead and built it up to 12-6 by scoring eight out of nine points behind good serving from Batezel and Sarah Ashley.

Kremer set up a 6-0 scoring run a few points later to give Montana a massive 18-8 lead. The Grizzlies, with nearly two sets completed, were hitting .526 in the match thanks to a .750 mark in the second set. They started perfect for much of the set, and had five players with at least one kill and every single one of them were above .400 hitting.

Start with the Paige Clark kill replay, stay for the Maddie Kremer ace! It's six straight Montana points and the Griz are up 18-8 here in the second!#GrizVB | #BigSkyVB | #GoGriz pic.twitter.com/0STNgnpE0q
— Montana Griz Volleyball (@MontanaGrizVB) September 23, 2023

The Eagles would put together a decent run at the end to make the score appear much closer than the set actually was at 25-22.

If there was any fear that the late second set rally from Eastern Washington might spark something in the hosts, the Grizzlies quickly put that idea to rest. Anderson ripped back-to-back service aces to start the set and Montana would hold the lead the rest of the way.

Batezel again had a nice service run in the middle of the set when the Eagles started to creep close, and Maddie Kremer had three kills in the final six points of the match to put it away in a sweep. It's the first sweep of the season for Montana, who win their second straight in Cheney and third straight overall against EWU.

In a gym that is often difficult to play inside of with a boisterous crowd on hand, the Grizzlies were able to silence most of the Eagles fans in attendance. It allowed a strong contingent of Griz fans, led by the University's club hockey team, to make Montana feel right at home.

Volleyball attended the hockey match against Eastern Washington the night before, and the men returned the favor on Saturday.

"Shoutout to Griz Hockey. We went to their game last night and it was so fun to support them," Lawrence said. "It was so fun to see another Griz team on the road, and then they came and stayed the whole match and cheered and did our rehearsed cheers and were loud. It felt like a home gym because of them."

A big shoutout to the Griz hockey team for showing up and supporting us today! #GoGriz pic.twitter.com/5FVIx9lMnI
— Montana Griz Volleyball (@MontanaGrizVB) September 23, 2023

Montana hit above .300 for the first time this season. The previous high on the year was .267 in a win against South Dakota State in Boise.

The win gives Montana some momentum as they return home for a single match next week. The Main Line Trophy will be on the line as the Grizzlies host Montana State in a rivalry match that should be entertaining. The Bobcats are 8-3 overall and 1-0 in Big Sky play entering tonight's match against Idaho State, where they will be favored again.

For the first time this year, Montana will have a full week of rest and prep. The match will be part of homecoming festivities on campus, and fans can purchase tickets for the event HERE. The Grizzlies swept the Bobcats in the rivalry last season and set an attendance record with more than 2,100 fans at the game in Missoula last year.