Griz return home at midway point of league play

MONTANA vs. IDAHO STATE (7-11, 3-3 Big Sky)
Thursday, Oct. 23 / 7:00 PM / Watch / Live Stats / Tickets

MONTANA vs. WEBER STATE (12-6, 4-2 Big Sky)
Saturday, Oct. 25 / 2:00 PM / Watch / Live Stats / Tickets

PREVIEW
It's been a long two-week stretch for Montana volleyball, even if they have played just three matches during the time. The Grizzlies have gone to five sets in each of their previous three matches and emerge from that grueling stretch with some momentum as they reach the midway point of conference play.

Montana hosts Idaho State on Thursday and Weber State on Saturday in the first match-up of the season with each team. The Grizzlies snapped a two-match losing streak, with both losses coming in five sets, with the program's first win in Portland in 10 years.

The Grizzlies had a 2-0 lead last Thursday at Sacramento State and were on the precipice of picking up the first win inside The Nest since 2013, but the host Hornets stormed back to win in five. It looked to be going the same way on Saturday, when Montana once again went up 2-0 only to get forced to a fifth.

This time it was the Grizzlies that had the answer in the final set. Montana was perfect in the fifth set, hitting .571 with eight kills and zero errors to get a huge road win and improve to 4-3 on the year.

"It was a really exciting response from Thursday, but we really want to look at are there pieces of our stamina or certain details or pieces of the game that are inhibiting our ability to finish," head coach Allison Lawrence said. "We've talked a lot about that since Montana State, how can we get around the corner in finishing when we are up in sets and matches?

"I think also on the same token you're just seeing the Big Sky be like that," Lawrence continued. "There is a lot of back-and-forth and a lot of momentum swings and it's really exciting."

For Lawrence, it was great to see a response from her team in the fifth set. The Grizzlies had narrow victories in sets one and two, closing out two-point sets successfully like they have been all season.

But they started to break down over the next two, falling 25-19 in both the third and fourth sets. The Griz were held under .100 hitting in the fourth. There was the looming sense that they were headed for a second straight reverse sweep.

Instead, the trio of Delaney Russell, Sydney Pierce, and Carley Spachman combined for eight kills on 11 swings with zero errors to push Montana to a huge road win.

"We regrouped after a pretty bad fourth set and a good job by Portland State to gain a lot of rhythm," Lawrence said. "We figured it out and had a big physical and emotional response, so it was great to feel that breakthrough."

They now host the Bengals and Wildcats in matches that could prove crucial to postseason positioning. Weber State is in 3^rd place at the moment with a 4-2 conference record, but all four of their wins have come at home. They are currently 0-2 on the road in league play.

Thursday's opponent, Idaho State, started league play 0-3 and won just a single set during that stretch. Since then, they have gone 3-0 while dropping just two sets. Montana sits right between the two squads in the league standings.

"I think both teams are tough and really physical," Lawrence said. "They both have a really good middle presence on defense and offense, and I think we have that as well, so I'm excited to see what that looks like matchup-wise."

The Big Sky has seen plenty of exciting action this year and the jam-packed league standings reflect that. The Grizzlies would have dropped to solo 8^th place with a loss in Portland. Instead, they have climbed back up to a tie for 4^th.

The co-league leaders, Northern Arizona and Northern Colorado, were both pushed to five sets on the weekend by 9^th place Idaho. The Vandals are currently just 1-6 in league play. There has been plenty of parity in the league standings, which has led to tight results every night.

Montana has found themselves picking up plenty of close match experience over the previous two weeks. It's just the second time in Lawrence's nine seasons that her team has played in three straight five-set matches.

The experience should prepare Montana for the back half of conference play as they look to return to the Big Sky Tournament this season with a top eight finish.

"I think this time of year in October with sets being decided by two points and matches being decided in extra sets, the biggest thing is who makes the wrong error at the wrong time," Lawrence said. "I think that's the story of October usually. Not that we have to stress about our errors, but I think that part of managing where everybody is wearing thin mentally or physically will be a big deal."

DIG PINK GAME – SATURDAY
Montana is hosting its annual Dig Pink match to support the Side-Out Foundation. The Grizzlies join thousands of teams across the country in advocating for those living with metastatic breast cancer (MBC) in their communities.

To donate, click HERE.

ABOUT THE SIDE-OUT FOUNDATION
The Side-Out Foundation, established in 2004, is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit making a significant impact on the lives of metastatic breast cancer patients and their families. Through innovative approaches and precision medicine research, Side-Out provides hope and treatment options for those with metastatic breast cancer. Their educational and community-driven programs, Dig Pink® and the Ambassador Program, engage a new generation in advocacy and fund revolutionary research. Side-Out envisions a future where breast cancer is not a terminal diagnosis and every patient has hope for more tomorrows.

BATEZEL CLIMBS THE RANKS
Alexis Batezel has continued to climb in the record book at Montana for career digs. The senior libero passed Erin Adams last week to move into 4^th place in program history with 1,336 career digs.

She now trails Brittney Brown by 116 digs for 3^rd place. Batezel is averaging 4.87 digs per set this season, which is the 4^th highest average in program history. She currently ranks 17^th in the NCAA and leads the Big Sky in digs.

HOME SUCCESS IN 2025
The Grizzlies have been good at home this year while playing in front of some of the best crowds in the Big Sky. Montana is 5-2 on its home floor, matching the most home wins for the program since 2022.

Montana set a new program attendance record with 3,001 fans in the stands for the Brawl of the Wild game. They are averaging 988 fans per contest this season, the 2^nd highest attendance in the league.

PIERCE CHASES SINGLE SEASON RECORD
Sophomore middle blocker Sydney Pierce has been on fire as of late as has the chance to make some Montana history in the final stretch of the season. The Billings product is hitting .374 this season, which would be the best mark all-time by a Grizzly if the season ended today.

The current record is .353, set by Jaimie Thibeault in 2009.

Pierce ranks 4^th in the Big Sky Conference in hitting percentage and 59^th in the NCAA entering the week. She has finished with 10+ kills in three straight matches and had her 8^th and 9^th matches hitting over .400 last week. She also hit over .700 for the third time this season in the loss at Sacramento State.

GRIZ NOTES

Head coach Allison Lawrence won her 50^th Big Sky match on Saturday. She is now 50-89 in Big Sky play in 11 seasons at Montana.
This is the first time since 2019 that Montana has played in three straight matches that were decided in five sets. The Griz haven't played in four straight 5-set matches since 2002.
Montana won a match at Portland State for the first time since 2015. The Grizzlies had dropped eight straight in the Rose City. It was the first win for Coach Lawrence in Portland.
The Grizzlies won multiple sets in Sacramento for the first time since 2013. The Hornets are 72-12 against Big Sky opponents at home since 2015.
Montana has had more digs than its opponent in 15 of the 18 matches this year. They are 12-3 when recording more digs.
The Griz improved to 4-2 on the road with Saturday's win. They have finished with a winning record on the road just once since 1994, going 7-5 in 2022.
UM lost for the first time this season when hitting over .200 on Thursday night. They hit .278 against Sacramento State but fell in five sets. They were previously 10-0 when hitting over .200.
Montana is looking to return to the Big Sky Tournament after missing out on postseason play in 2024. The Griz have reached the postseason in five of Lawrence's eight seasons.
The Griz are 2-3 in five-set matches this season. It's the most five-set matches for the program in a single season since 2021, when they were 6-3 in nine five-setters.

PLAYER NOTES

Emma Williams played all five sets in her hometown of Portland, Ore. on Saturday as the second libero. Williams had a career high four digs in the match.
Freshman Annika Wright recorded 12 digs at Portland State on Saturday. It was the 5^th time this season that she has reached double figures, doing so three times in her last four appearances.
Alexis Batezel is averaging 4.87 digs per set this season, the 3^rd best average by a Grizzly in program history.
Setter Gracie Cagle has recorded at least 45 assists in four straight matches. She had her 3^rd match of the season with 50+ assists on Saturday night in Portland.
- Cagle has recorded four straight double-doubles and is now up to 10 on the season.
Delaney Russell recorded a career high 23 kills on .224 hitting in Montana's win at Portland State. Russell has now finished with 20-or-more kills in three of the last four matches.
- Russell also had a career high 16 digs against the Vikings. She's recorded four double-doubles in the last five matches and has nine total this season.
- The sophomore outside hitter has double-digit kills in each of the previous seven matches and a dozen total 10-kill matches this year.
Freshman Madeline Sanderson recorded 20 digs at Portland State on Saturday night, a new season high. She has reached double figures six times in her first collegiate season.
Sydney Pierce has recorded 10+ kills in three straight matches, the longest streak of her career. She had 26 total kills on .561 hitting last weekend across the two matches, including a career high 14 kills at Sacramento State.
Carley Spachman had a career high 16 kills at Sacramento State on Thursday night, hitting .462 in the match. She recorded double digit kills in back-to-back matches for the first time all season when she had 10 against Portland State.

HISTORIC NOTES FOR 2025

The Grizzlies have hit over .300 in six different matches already this season. It's the 3^rd most in a single season in program history. The record is 7, set in both 1991 and 1989.
The Grizzlies went 8-3 in non-conference play in 2025. It's tied for the 3^rd best winning percentage in program history for a non-conference schedule and tied for the 3^rd most wins.
This is the first time in program history that Montana has finished undefeated in the month of September. It's just the 6^th time ever that they've had a perfect month, and the 10 wins are the 2^nd most in an undefeated month in program history.
The current team hitting percentage of .227 is the 4^th-best for Montana in program history. The 1991 team holds the program record at .240.
Montana's single season record for individual hitting percentage is .353 by Jaimie Thibeault in 2009. Sydney Pierce (.374) and Olivia LaBeau (.336) are both inside the top five all-time best single seasons through 18 matches.
Montana has had the Big Sky Player of the Week five times already in 2025. It's the second-most all-time, trailing only the 1994 season when Montana had six Player of the Week honors.
Montana's .416 hitting percentage against Butler was the best in the 25-point scoring era and the best by the team since hitting .500 against Canisius in 2007.
The five errors committed by Montana in the Butler match are the fewest by a Grizzly team in program history. It broke the previous record of 7 set on four occasions.

SCOUTING IDAHO STATE (7-11, 3-3 Big Sky)

The Bengals have played just six games through the first four weeks of league play and have been very streaky in that time. They started the season 0-3, but have rebounded with three straight home wins to get back to .500.
Idaho State is 1-5 on the road this year and 0-2 in Big Sky road matches.
Head coach Sean Carter is in his 4^th season at Idaho State with a 49-58 overall record. The Bengals went 21-10 last year. They finished 11-5 in Big Sky play to earn the No. 2 seed at the conference tournament.
ISU has been very good defensively under Carter and has continued that trend this season. They are holding opponents to .177 hitting to rank 2^nd in the Big Sky and 43^rd nationally. They also lead the league with 2.73 blocks per set.
Marci Bell has been their top defender with 1.31 blocks per set. She leads the Big Sky and ranks 38^th in the NCAA this season.
Jaydin Watts was the Preseason Big Sky Most Valuable Player this year. The middle blocker is averaging 1.10 blocks per set to rank 7^th in the league while hitting .362 offensively.
Libero Jenna Werbelow is 3^rd in the Big Sky with 4.20 digs per set.

SERIES HISTORY VS. THE BENGALS

Montana leads the all-time series 47-41. The Grizzlies are 23-16 in Missoula. Idaho State swept the season series in 2024, but the Grizzlies have won three of the last five matches and five of the last nine.

SCOUTING WEBER STATE (12-6, 4-2 Big Sky)

The Wildcats played just one match last week, losing on the road to Idaho State in four sets. They were in 1^st place in the league after three weeks but dropped to 3^rd with the loss.
Weber State has been very good at home this year with a 7-1 record in Ogden, but they have struggled on the road with just a 1-5 mark in true away contests. They have lost four straight road matches, including both Big Sky contests away from home.
Head coach Jeremiah Larsen is in his 11^th season at Weber State. The Wildcats are typically toward the top of the league under Larsen, who has a 178-130 overall record.
WSU has been very good all-around this year with a particularly explosive offense. The Wildcats hit .246 as a team, which ranks 2^nd in the Big Sky and 71^st nationally. They are also 4^th in the conference in opponent hitting percentage, limiting the opposition to .196 on the year.
The Wildcats are 2^nd in the league in aces (1.69/set) and 3^rd in blocks (2.34/set).
Morgan Pratt ranks 2^nd in the Big Sky and 88^th nationally with 9.22 assists per set.
Ashley Gneiting averages 0.42 aces per set to rank 2^nd in the league and 69^th in the NCAA.
Three different Wildcats average over 3.00 kills per set. Kaylie Ray leads with 3.45 on .231 hitting, followed by Gneiting (3.11, .193) and Rose Moore (3.08, .238).

SERIES HISTORY VS. THE WILDCATS

Montana leads the all-time series 48-41. The Grizzlies are 26-17 in Missoula. The series has been one-sided of late with Weber State winning the previous 13 meetings. UM's last win in the series came in 2017, and its last home win was in 2013.
Weber State head coach Jeremiah Larsen is 15-1 against Montana in his 11 seasons with the Wildcats and has never lost in Missoula.

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Players Mentioned

Alexis Batezel

Gracie Cagle

Olivia LaBeau

Sydney Pierce

Delaney Russell

Madeline Sanderson

Carley Spachman

Emma Williams

Annika Wright

University of Montana Athletics