Griz head to Fargo for pair of matches against NDSU

MONTANA AT NORTH DAKOTA STATE
MATCH 1
Friday, Sept. 13 / 6:00 p.m. (MT) / Watch / Live Stats
MATCH 2
Saturday, Sept. 14 / 12:00 p.m. (MT) / Watch / Live Stats

A successful home tournament behind them, the Montana volleyball will now turn their attention to the North Dakota State Bison as they travel to Fargo for a pair of matches this weekend.

The Grizzlies and Bison will face off on Friday evening at 6:00 p.m. (MT) and again on Saturday morning at 12:00 noon. The matches will be streamed on Midco Sports Plus.

Montana (3-3) dropped the finale in the Ellesyn Invitational in Missoula last weekend, but had plenty to be excited about at the conclusion of their home tournament. They picked up the first sweep of the year in a win over Southern Miss and added a very impressive win over a 5-1 Utah Valley team.

"I'm really proud of the results," head coach Allison Lawrence said. "I thought it was a great tournament. I wish we would have had a different finish, but I think we were challenged in ways that we will be in all of our conference games. If you look at the complete weekend we got to see a lot of the depth of our roster come in and see a lot of people be tested."

It's been the defense that has been leading the charge for Montana this season. The Grizzlies rank 8^th in the entire NCAA in blocks/set, averaging over 3.10. The middle blockers have been huge in that effort as Sierra Dennison (27 blocks) and Brenley Hansen (26) are both ranked inside the top 100 nationally.

The impressive blocking has also meant that opponents are having a difficult time hitting well against Montana. They rank 63^rd in the country by allowing just a .164 hitting percentage to their opponents.

The Griz have already held a pair of opponents below .100 hitting this season, which already matches their total from a year ago. It's a different look in the middle with Dennison and Hansen both new to the starting lineup this year, but so far it has been paying off.

"I think there were great scenarios we got to be in and fight through and different obstacles in each match and have a ton of success," Lawrence said. "If you would have told me when we were scheduling this years ago that we would be 2-1 in a weekend like that on paper, I would have been really happy."

Montana now shifts its attention to the North Dakota State Bison. The defense that has led them so far this season will be key, but the Griz will also be hoping that the offense can find a spark against a Bison team that has allowed opponents to hit .270 through five matches this season.

The weekend trip will be vastly different from the experiences in the first two weeks of the season. Instead of three matches in three days against three different opponents, Montana will face off twice against the same opposition in the span of under 24 hours.

It's a test that should help them prepare for the Big Sky Conference schedule that will see them face seven league opponents multiple times. It allows you to gauge the good and the bad and make adjustments from there.

"I think it's super exciting," Paige Clark said. "You get to learn what the other team is and on the first day you just learn and then the second day, it's kind of like during conference play when you just know everything about that team. I feel like it really prepares us for conference. You get to fix mistakes that you might have made the first time or keep doing things that worked, and just sort through information together as a team."

Lawrence said that it simplifies things in the scouting department having to just focus on a single team. It also allows more rest while still pushing themselves physically.

There have been learning moments through the first two weeks. The highs have been great, but there have been difficult times as well. Lawrence is hoping that her team continues to fight through adversity and learn in that process.

"I think I want to see them continue to be them. This team is very gritty in ways that I think you don't know until you get into the fray with them," Lawrence said. "They are very determined and gritty learners, so any time we are in a bad situation we're learning through that really well… I think there is so much unity and belief, I think it's a really big team effort."

CLARK'S QUEST FOR 1K
Senior outside hitter Paige Clark is closing in on 1,000 career kills at Montana. The three-time All-Conference selection has 978, and could very easily reach the 1,000-kill milestone this weekend.

Clark has averaged 3.40 kills per set so far this season and has been in double-digit kills in four straight matches. She has a team-high 68 total kills in 2024 and is hitting .162 on the year.

Clark passed Heidi Willams on Montana's all-time lists in the previous match and would be just the 15^th Grizzly in program history to reach 1,000. In order to crack the top 10 in program history, she needs at least 1,110 career kills.

ALL-TOURNEY HONORS
Montana have had two different players earn All-Tournament honors through the first two weeks of the season.

Maddie Pyles, a junior starting for the first time in her career, made the All-Tournament team at the Grand Canyon Invitational. The award came after an incredibly balanced weekend that saw her spark the team to a Sunday victory over Oregon State.

Pyles recorded 17 kills, 12 digs, and 12 blocks on the weekend. She had a massive performance against Oregon State, recording a near triple-double with 10 digs, 9 kills, and 7 blocks. Her energy also helped stabilize Montana after a slow start to the weekend, as head coach Allison Lawrence said she was one of two pillars for the Griz on the weekend.

Paige Clark earned the post-tourney honor at the Ellesyn Invitational last weekend. The powerful outside hitter reached double figure kills in all three matches, finishing with 38 total kills (3.80/set) on .240 hitting.

Clark also had five service aces and just one receiving error through the 10 sets of the weekend while ranking third on the team with 18 digs.

SERIES HISTORY WITH NDSU
This will be just the fourth all-time meeting between the two schools. The Bison lead the all-time series 2-1. It will be the first-ever match played in Fargo between the two schools. North Dakota State have won the previous two meetings in 2008 and 2016. Montana's last win came in 2005. It will be Coach Lawrence's first match against NDSU as head coach.

SCOUTING NORTH DAKOTA STATE (1-4)

The Bison finished the 2023 season 18-11 overall and 9-7 in Summit League play. They were eliminated in the semifinal round of the conference tournament.
NDSU dropped its first four matches of the season, but did pick up a win in their last outing. They defeated Southern Illinois Edwardsville 3-1 at home as part of the NDSU/UND Tournament.
In the four losses, the Bison have pushed their opponents to five sets three times. They lost in the final set to FGCU, Illinois Chicago, and West Virginia.
North Dakota State is 1-1 at home this season. They went 7-3 in Fargo during the 2023 season.
Head coach Jennifer Lopez is in her eighth season as head coach of North Dakota State. She has a 102-94 overall record with the Bison, including back-to-back winning seasons in 2022 and 2023.
The Bison are hitting .177 as a team this season, and have been good at the service line. They rank 81^st in the NCAA with 1.82 aces per set. Opponents are hitting .270 through five matches, with four opponents hitting over .200 against them.
Ali Hinze leads the Bison with 3.41 kills/set. She ranks 5^th in the Summit League and inside the top 200 nationally in the category.
Logan O'Brien is second in the Summit with 83 digs this year.

GRIZ NOTES

Montana recorded 15 blocks in a win over Oregon State and followed it up with 16 blocks in the win over Utah Valley. It's the first time since 1999 that the Grizzlies had consecutive matches with at least 15 blocks.
The Grizzlies are .500 or better through six matches for just the fourth time since 2009. It's the third time in seven fall seasons that an Allison Lawrence-led team is at least .500 through six matches, joining the 2022 and 2017 squads. Montana was also .500 or better in 2011.
Montana outhit its opponents .181 to .145 at the Ellesyn Invitational. All three matches were quick outings as they played in two sweeps and one match that went to four sets.
The Grizzlies are 3-0 when they finish with more digs than their opponent this year. They are also 2-0 when they finish with more assists.
Paige Clark is fourth in the Big Sky in kills with 3.40 per set. She is also tied for third in service aces with 0.45 per set.
Casi Newman is averaging 7.28 assists per set to rank fifth in the Big Sky Conference.
Brenley Hansen ranks second in the Big Sky with 1.86 blocks per set. She has played in just 14 sets and has totaled 26 blocks on the year. Sierra Dennison is fourth in the conference with 1.35 blocks per set, and Maddie Pyles also cracks the top 10 with 1.10 per set.
Libero Alexis Batezel is third in the Big Sky in digs with 3.80 per set.

Griz head to Fargo for pair of matches against NDSU

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Alexis Batezel

Paige Clark

Sierra Dennison

Brenley Hansen

Casi Newman

Maddie Pyles

University of Montana Athletics

Griz head to Fargo for pair of matches against NDSU

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Alexis Batezel

Paige Clark

Sierra Dennison

Brenley Hansen

Casi Newman

Maddie Pyles

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