Bengals beat Grizzlies in four

Saturday, October 5

Pocatello, Idaho

2:00 PM

Montana

5-10,0-4Big Sky

Idaho State

12-4,3-1Big Sky

Montana

Idaho St.

Photo by: Ryan Brennecke/ University of Montana

10/5/2024 5:44:00 PM | Volleyball

Box Score

By: Montana Sports Information

The top-ranked defense in the country gave Montana volleyball problems on Saturday afternoon in Pocatello, Idaho as they Grizzlies fell in four sets to the host Idaho State Bengals.

Montana had 13 blocks on their own in a matchup between two of the best blocking defenses in the Big Sky, but Idaho State stopped 17 Griz attacks in the home win.

It's the second straight game for Montana with 10-plus blocks, following up on a 14-block performance Thursday night against Weber State. It's the fifth time this season that Montana has reached double figure blocks in a match.

Brenley Hansen, who is from Twin Falls, matched her season-high with eight blocks. Casi Newman added five blocks, and also recorded a double-double with 34 assists and 10 digs.

The Griz (5-10, 0-4) had three different players reach double-figure kills on the day, led by Paige Clark with 15. Clark, from just down the road in Idaho Falls, played in front of a large crowd of friends and family.

Maddie Pyles had a good day attacking with 11 kills on .318 hitting. Maddie Kremer also reached double-digits with 11 kills, and made it a double-double with a team-high 14 digs. Freshman Sydney Pierce had six kills on nine swings off the bench in a career day for the Billings product.

"There are improvements that are happening that are little, but they are going to add up in the long run," associate head coach Dana Hallisey said. "In the locker room after we were talking about focusing on the moments where we are doing things well for extended periods of time. That piece is getting better."

Idaho State started the match hot, scoring five of the first six points to take a lead that they wouldn't relinquish in the first set. Montana cut into it on a few occasions, getting it back to a two-point deficit multiple times, but the Bengals pulled away late behind a huge offensive set to win it 25-19.

The Bengals hit .478 in the set to outpace Montana at .192. Clark had a big impact in the opening set with five kills on just seven swings for a .571 percentage.

Montana scored the opening point of the second on a kill from Pierce, but the Bengals responded with four straight points and once again led the entire way through the set. The Grizzlies hit .179 in the second behind four kills each from Clark and Kremer, and improved defensively, but it wouldn't get them to the win in a 25-21 loss.

After just one tie over the course of the first two sets, the teams battled out an incredibly tight third set. There were 20 total ties and nine lead changes as the teams went back and forth.

The Bengals pulled ahead 15-13 at the media timeout, but Montana scored five of the next six points behind an array of attackers and a couple blocks to jump ahead 18-16.

Idaho State closed the ground, and went ahead in the final moments. Montana faced match point at 24-23, but a service error from the Bengals tied it back up at 24-all. The Bengals appeared to take another lead, but a successful challenge instead gave Montana a set point.

Clark took advantage on the next point, ripping a big kill to win the set 26-24.

Freshman Sydney Pierce with a season-high six kills on just eight swings.

The bench is loving it😂 pic.twitter.com/ylXFj0cA7y
— Montana Griz Volleyball (@MontanaGrizVB) October 5, 2024

Montana fell behind 10-4 early in the fourth, and while they were able to get it back to just two points at 17-15 after a Hansen kill, the Bengals finished the match with eight of the last nine points to improve to 12-4 overall and 3-1 in Big Sky play.

It's the fourth straight week that Montana has been on the road, and the schedule hasn't been kind to them up to this point. They have played four matches, and all of them are against teams in the top five of the conference standings.

Freshman Sydney Pierce with a season-high six kills on just eight swings.

The bench is loving it😂 pic.twitter.com/ylXFj0cA7y
— Montana Griz Volleyball (@MontanaGrizVB) October 5, 2024

The Griz get a chance to return home a weekend set against Idaho and Eastern Washington next week, two teams that are a combined 1-5 overall. Montana will play Idaho on Thursday night at 7:00 p.m. The Grizzly soccer team also plays Idaho on Thursday, and a ticket to either match will get you into the other for free.

"We have to pull the little wins from this week and the pieces of our game that are growing so much and then trust that piece and push into it way harder," Hallisey said. "That is what is going to continue the process and pay us back over the course of the season."