Griz face pair of road tests

As the midway point of the conference season approaches, the Montana volleyball team faces an important test on the road this week. The Grizzlies will face off against winless Northern Arizona in Flagstaff before taking on Northern Colorado in a rematch of the Big Sky opener.

The Grizzlies and Bears met just three weeks ago in a 3-1 victory for Northern Colorado. Montana battled tough in that one, losing the total point spread by just one as they outblocked Northern Colorado while also putting up their best serving performance of the year with 11 aces.

The offense from Northern Colorado, which ranks near the top of the league, hit .258 in that match. It started an impressive run for the Bears through the first three weeks of league play as they currently are tied for first with a 4-1 record.

Before that rematch, however, Montana has an opportunity to create some distance in the league standings between themselves and ninth-place Northern Arizona. The Lumberjacks enter the week 0-5 in league play after an impressive 7-4 non-conference schedule.

The Grizzlies are currently in eighth in the Big Sky standings. They already have a victory over last-place Idaho, sweeping them at home last Thursday. The top eight teams in the league make the postseason, meaning that while there is still a lot of volleyball to be played this year, Thursday night will be important for positioning at the midway point.

The top seven teams in the conference are all above .500 at the moment, setting up several intriguing matchups over the weekend. Northern Colorado is tied for the league lead with Idaho State and Sacramento State as all three teams are 4-1.

Behind them are four teams with two losses each. Montana and Montana State are the only two teams to have played six matches through three weeks, as they still await the first rivalry game of the season next week in Missoula.

Both matches will be streamed on ESPN+.

CLARK'S QUEST FOR HISTORY

Paige Clark is rising the all-time ranks at Montana in several categories, and she has entered the top 10 in program history in recent weeks.

Clark has 1,176 career kills, which is the 8^th most in program history. She recently passed Griz legend and Canadian national team member Jaimie Thibeault, who played from 2007-10, and Erin Adams (1996-2000). Clark trails Karen Goff by 79 kills for 7^th.

She is also closing in on 10^th in program history at 125 career service aces with 28 already this season. She needs three more to tie Linde Eidenberg for 10^th. She has averaged at least 0.30 all four years at Montana, including a career best 0.46 per set in 2024.

Clark is the first Grizzly since Amy Roberts in 2011 to reach the 1,000-kill mark. She is only the third player to reach the mark with all four of her years in the 25-point scoring era, and just the sixth player since 2000 to reach 1,000.

The senior is also a three-time All-Big Sky selection. She is just the sixth Grizzly in program history to make three separate All-Conference teams, and is looking to join Jaimie Thibeault (2007-10) as the only four-timers in school history.

SCOUTING NORTHERN ARIZONA (7-9, 0-5 BIG SKY)

The Lumberjacks entered Big Sky play on a five-match winning streak, but have struggled out of the gates against league opponents. Northern Arizona are 0-5 in conference play with just a single set win.
Northern Arizona was on the road last weekend, losing 3-1 at Sacramento State before being swept at Portland State on Saturday.
In the non-conference, Northern Arizona held opponents to .182 hitting. In conference play, they are 9^th by allowing opponents to hit .252.
They also rank 9^th in the Big Sky during conference play in hitting percentage, assists, kills, and service aces. They are last in the Big Sky in blocks with just 1.56 per set.
Sophia Wadsworth is 9^th in Big Sky play in hitting percentage at .319. She has 31 kills to just nine errors.
Taylor Jacobsen is 10^th in the Big Sky with 3.10 kills per set. She averages 3.72 kills per set on .198 hitting in all matches.
The Lumberjacks have used three setters this season. Keira Hall leads the team with 273 assists, and Karya Suvarioglu is second with 231. Melia Barlow has 40, 39 of which have come in Big Sky play.

SCOUTING NORTHERN COLORADO (13-5, 4-1 BIG SKY)

The Bears lost their second match of opening weekend in five sets to Idaho State, but since then have been on a nice little run. They've won three straight, including a five-set victory at Sacramento State last Saturday to give the Hornets their first loss of the season in the Nest.
Northern Colorado is the top-ranked team in the Big Sky according to the NCAA RPI Ranking. The Bears are 68^th in the country, and are 6-0 in matches against teams ranked outside of the top 150.
Impressively, Northern Colorado has built the 4-1 league record while playing 80 percent of their matches away from home. The Bears are 4-0 in road matches, but lost their only home Big Sky match to Idaho State in five sets.
They rank 3^rd in the Big Sky by hitting .242, and are also 5^th in the league on defense by holding opponents to .195 hitting.
Syd Cole ranks 3^rd in the Big Sky in assists per set with 9.75. The senior and former league MVP is the best setter when using season-long stats, averaging 9.99 assists to lead the league and rank 44^th in the country.
Gabi Placide is 3^rd in the Big Sky in total points with 280. She is also ranked 3^rd in the league during Big Sky play with 3.85 kills per set and 4.45 points per set.

SERIES HISTORIES

Northern Arizona leads the all-time series 37-36 over Montana. The Griz are 14-20 all-time in matches played in Flagstaff. The Griz have won three of the last four meetings, but prior to that had lost nine straight and 13 of 14. This is the first and only meeting for the two schools in 2024.
Northern Colorado leads the all-time series 28-9. The Griz haven't defeated the Bears since 2013, losing 19 straight in the series. Montana is 2-14 all-time in Greeley, but their last win in the series also came on the road. UNC won 3-1 in the first meeting this year.

MONTANA NOTES

Montana had its best offensive performance of the season in the win over Idaho, hitting .375. It's the first time this season Montana has been over .300 hitting, and was the best percentage by a Grizzly team since 2014.
The Griz hadn't hit .400 in a set all year long, but did so twice in the sweep of Idaho.
The sweep of Idaho was the third of the season for Montana. They have been swept five times. They also have a 3-5 record in four-set matches, and have only gone five sets one time this year. They played five matches that went five sets last year, and have played at least four in every season under Lawrence.
The Griz have struggled in tight sets, going just 4-10 (.286) in sets decided by the minimum of two points.
Montana is 5-1 when holding opponents under .200 hitting. They have allowed their opponent to hit over .200 in 11 matches, going 1-10.
The Grizzlies are 1-5 through six matches for the fifth time under head coach Allison Lawrence. Montana has historically been much better in the back half of league play under Lawrence than the first half. They are 19-45 (.297) in first-half matches, and 23-35 (.397) in second-half matches.
Paige Clark ranks near the top of the Big Sky in several categories this year. Clark is 2^nd in points per set (4.37), 3^rd in kills per set (3.62), and 3^rd in aces per set (0.46).
Clark had a streak of 13 straight matches with at least 10 kills come to an end last Thursday against Idaho. She had eight kills in that match, hitting .615 and getting limited run in a blowout win for Montana.
Clark also had a 13-match streak with at least one ace come to an end in the win over Idaho. She has 28 aces this season, and is closing in on the top 10 in program history.
Brenley Hansen missed the Idaho-Eastern Washington weekend with an injury. She is averaging 1.10 kills and 1.29 blocks per set in her 14 matches this year. Hansen is ranked 4^th in the Big Sky in blocking.
Alexis Batezel is 3^rd and the Big Sky and just outside the top 100 nationally with 4.05 digs per set. She has reached double-figures in 11 straight matches, and averaged 6.0 digs per set in the last match against Eastern Washington.
Maddie Pyles has recorded at least five kills in eight straight matches. She has also been in double-digits for digs in back-to-back matches and four of the last five. She reached 10 digs just twice in the first 12 matches of the year.
Sierra Dennison is 8^th in the Big Sky with 1.09 blocks per set. She's had a block in every match, and averaged 1.5 kills per set last weekend.
Freshman Sydney Pierce has started four matches for Montana, including the previous two. She's averaging 5.0 kills per match over the last three, setting and tying her career high with six kills at Idaho State and at home vs. Idaho. She has a block in four straight matches.
Casi Newman averages 8.12 assists per set, which ranks 5^th in the Big Sky. In the Idaho win, Newman matched her career high with six kills on .667 hitting. She's reached double-digit assists in 12 straight matches and has four double-doubles on the year.
Maddie Kremer is averaging a career-best 2.70 kills per set this year, and has reached double figures in eight of the last 10 matches.
Jackie Howell has played in four Big Sky matches this year. Howell had a season-high seven digs in the loss against Eastern Washington, playing in all three sets.
Delaney Russell had a season-high four kills in the win over Idaho. She hit .333 on nine attempts. Entering the match, Russell had just one kill on five attacks during the season.
Gracie Cagle had seven assists in the win over Idaho. She's averaging 2.85 per set in 14 appearances.
Ginny Pace matched her career high with three kills in the win over Idaho. j
Josie Blazina and Calista Ousley both made their Montana debuts in the Grizzly win over Idaho on Oct. 10.

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Players Mentioned

Alexis Batezel

Josie Blazina

Gracie Cagle

Paige Clark

Sierra Dennison

Brenley Hansen

Jackie Howell

Maddie Kremer

Casi Newman

Calista Ousley

Ginny Pace

Sydney Pierce

Maddie Pyles

Delaney Russell

University of Montana Athletics