Griz back home for Senior Night

Thursday, November 13

Missoula, Mont.

7:00 PM

Montana

Idaho

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The Montana Grizzlies play Montana State at Dahlberg Arena in Missoula on Saturday, Oct. 11, 2025.

Photo by: Ryan Brennecke / University of Montana

11/11/2025 6:25:00 PM | Volleyball

Match Notes

By: Montana Sports Information

MONTANA (15-8, 7-5 Big Sky) vs. IDAHO (5-19, 2-10 Big Sky)
Thursday, Nov. 13 / 7:00 PM / Watch / Live Stats / Tickets

MONTANA vs. EASTERN WASHINGTON (2-22, 0-12 Big Sky)
Saturday, Nov. 15 / 2:00 PM / Watch / Live Stats / Tickets

The Montana volleyball team picked up an emotional win last Friday, traveling to Bozeman to defeat the rival Bobcats in four sets and bring the Main Line Trophy back home to Missoula. The Grizzlies now get set for another emotional week as they will play the final home games of the year against Idaho and Eastern Washington.

The Grizzlies will honor four seniors before the Eastern Washington game as Alexis Batezel, Maddie Pyles, Olivia LaBeau, and Carley Spachman will play the final home matches of their careers.

Montana will also honor Elle Farmer, who joined the team four years ago through Team IMPACT and has been an incredibly important and inspiring member of the team.

"I think this senior class has really pushed the program toward greatness. I think that's been a large part of the narrative during their time here, especially for Maddie and Lexi," head coach Allison Lawrence said. "They have pushed us closer than ever before. Greatness is never something you arrive at, and that was never our expectation, but how do you instill greatness in everything that you do so that we're getting closer and closer every year to our potential and where we want this thing to be."

It's a big week for a Montana team that has clinched a postseason spot but is still in the thick of things in the Big Sky race. The Grizzlies welcome the 9^th and 10^th place teams in the league to Missoula on a week where two wins could pull them into a top three position.

They will welcome the Vandals to Missoula on Thursday and look to extend the winning streak over Idaho to nine matches. The Griz won in straight sets earlier this year in Moscow.

Montana will then face Eastern Washington for the first time this season, an oddity this late in the year. The Eagles are 0-12 in league play and have lost 14 straight matches overall.

Momentum will be on Montana's side as they return home for the final games of the season. The Grizzlies have won the last two matches inside Dahlberg Arena and they are coming off a huge road win in front of a raucous crowd in Bozeman.

The Grizzlies dropped the opening set but responded with three straight wins to take down the Bobcats on their own floor. Montana got stronger as the match went on, winning 25-14 in the fourth set in a complete rout of MSU.

Lawrence said after the game that her team showed that it still has a lot of legs as they get set for the home stretch of the season.

"It was a thrill of a game in an outstanding atmosphere. I'm just so proud of our team's poise and how well they maintain details when there are a lot of potential distractions in that fun of an environment," Lawrence said. "I loved how consistent we were, I loved how inward focused we were in terms of really just focusing on our own team for strength and consistency and energy. It felt like such a team win."

The Grizzlies are looking to make some history if they can pick up a pair of wins this week, but they are not overlooking either team as they have both been dangerous this year. Montana has already clinched a winning season and a postseason spot, but they are hungry for even more.

This week they could tie the 2022 team for the most wins by the program this century and they could also increase their home win total to nine, which would be the 5^th most in program history.

In a year that has already since so many superlatives, the Grizzlies are hoping to honor their senior class by adding a few more on Thursday and Saturday.

SENIOR DAY CELEBRATION
The Grizzlies will honor four seniors prior to the first serve on Saturday against Eastern Washington. Alexis Batezel and Maddie Pyles will be playing in their final games in Missoula after four years with the program, while Olivia LaBeau and Carley Spachman will be honored in their final career games after transferring to Montana this offseason.

Montana will also honor Elle Farmer who is completing her 4^th year with the program after joining the Grizzlies as an 8-year old through Team IMPACT back in 2022.

"I can't say enough about this group and their dedication day in and day out. I think that this particular group has a nice mix of leadership, some that is very outward and communication base, willing to say the hard things at the right times," Lawrence said. "But I think so much of it is led through connections happening on the court in front of everybody and built off the court for four years."

Batezel and Pyles joined Montana in 2022 and have had plenty of highs in their four years as Grizzlies. The Grizzlies have won 53 matches in that four-year span. It's the best four-year stretch for the program since winning 56 matches from 1994-97.

A three-year starter at the libero position for Montana, Batezel has etched her name into program history. She enters this week 4^th in program history with 1,419 career digs and has the chance to jump into the top three with a big week.

She is also in the middle of one of the best individual seasons in program history at the position. Batezel should crack the top 10 for single season digs this week with a chance to continue rising. She's 2^nd in the Big Sky and 29^th in the NCAA with 4.71 digs per set.

Batezel will play her 400^th career set on Thursday against Idaho.

Pyles had an unfortunate start to her final season in Missoula with an injury during fall camp, but has recovered from that and is now playing her best volleyball of the season at a time when Montana needs it the most.

A starter in the last two matches, Pyles has averaged 9.5 kills per match on nearly .250 hitting. She has 264 kills in her career across 80 total matches played.

Olivia LaBeau and Carley Spachman have only been with the program for a year, but the duo has been a difference maker for the Griz this year. LaBeau is averaging 2.51 kills per set on .333 hitting, while Spachman has been a defensive anchor in the middle with 1.02 blocks per set.

It's the way that LaBeau and Spachman both effortlessly joined the team and added to the culture that has impressed Lawrence the most.

"The two that came in, being new, took things on in a very mature and a very rare way for transfers," Lawrence said. "I couldn't be more proud."

BATTLES VS. THE BIG SKY
Montana has proved this season that they can hang with anyone in the conference. The Griz have at least one win against seven of the other nine teams in the conference. They have yet to play Eastern Washington.

If they were to beat the Eagles on Saturday, the Griz would have wins against eight unique Big Sky opponents. The last time they won against at least eight different league opponents was 1999.

Northern Colorado is the only Big Sky team that Montana has played but not defeated this season.

POSTSEASON PICTURE
Montana has guaranteed a spot in the Big Sky Conference Tournament with its win at Montana State last Friday. The Grizzlies, at 7-5 in Big Sky play, are tied for 4^th place in the league standings.

The top eight teams make the postseason and the Grizzlies are five games clear of Idaho with four games remaining. The Griz are just 1.5 games out of 2^nd place, but only a game clear of MSU in 7^th place. There will be plenty to play four in the final two weeks of the season.

This is the 6^th time that Montana has made the tournament in eight fall seasons under Coach Lawrence, and they return to postseason play after finishing 9^th in 2024.

GRIZ NOTES

Montana is 7-2 at home this season. It's tied for the 14^th most wins in a season in program history. If Montana were to win both this weekend, the 9 home victories would be tied for 5^th most in program history.
The potential 9-2 home record would also be tied for the 5^th best in program history and would be the best home winning percentage for the program since going 10-1 in 1999.
The Grizzlies, with two wins this week, would tie the 2022 team for the most wins this century. The last time that Montana won 18 or more matches in a year was 1999.
Montana could clinch a winning record in Big Sky play this season with two wins this week. It would be just the 2^nd time since 2013 that Montana finished over .500 in Big Sky play.
This season, Montana is 18-6 in sets decided by two points.
Montana is 17-6 in 2^nd sets this year.
On the road, the Griz are now 5-4 this season. It's just the 2^nd time since 2013 that Montana has won five road games in a season. Montana has finished with a winning record on the road just once since 1994, going 7-5 in 2022.
The Grizzlies are 14-1 when hitting over .200 this season.
They rank 17^th in the NCAA and lead the Big Sky with 16.73 digs per set.
Montana is 28^th in the country in kills, averaging 13.73 per set.

PLAYER NOTES

Alexis Batezel will play in her 400^th career set on Thursday night. The Grizzly senior has played in 397 sets across 108 matches in her career.
- Batezel is averaging 4.71 digs per set this season, the best average in her career. She ranks 2^nd in the Big Sky and 29^th nationally in digs.
- She has averaged over 4.00 digs per set in 15 matches this year.
Senior Maddie Pyles has started the previous two matches for Montana in replacement of the injured Olivia LaBeau. Pyles is averaging 2.4 kills per set over the previous two matches.
- She recorded her 300^th career dig at Montana State.
Junior setter Gracie Cagle continues to lead the Big Sky in assists. She is averaging 9.88 per set this year to rank 49^th nationally.
- Cagle also ranks 3^rd in the Big Sky in service aces with 0.40 per set. The mark is inside the top 100 nationally this year.
- She's reached double figures for assists in every game this year, and also has at least one kill in every match.
Delaney Russell ranks 4^th in the Big Sky in kills with 3.47 per set. Russell gets nearly 11 attacks per set this year and is one of the top 100 players in the country in terms of total attacks.
- Russell has been in double figures for kills in every Big Sky match this season, recording at least 10 kills in 12 straight matches overall.
- She has 11 double-doubles this season.
- Russell hit over .250 for the first time since Sept. 25 at Montana State. She had 17 kills on .250 hitting in the rivalry win. The performance brought her over 300 kills on the season.
Sydney Pierce ranks 7^th in the Big Sky in hitting percentage at .338.
- She recorded her 250^th career kill at Montana State on 11/7. She reached double figures for the 13^th time this season in the rivalry win.
- Pierce hit over .400 for the 11^th time this season.
- Pierce needs 4 more blocks for 100 in her career.
Carley Spachman had 10 kills on .421 hitting at Montana State (11/7). It's the 4^th time this season she's reached double figure kills.
- Spachman has recorded at least 7 kills in eight straight matches.
Freshman Mylee Blake had 12 kills at Montana State last Friday. It's 13^th time this season she's been in double figures, and her 6^th match this season hitting over .300.
Freshman Madeline Sanderson recorded 12 digs at Montana State. It's the 8^th time this season that Sanderson has reached double figures.
Annika Wright has recorded at least five digs in 12 straight matches dating back to mid-September.

SCOUTING IDAHO (5-19, 2-10 BIG SKY)

The Vandals are 2-10 in Big Sky play this year with both wins coming over Eastern Washington. They have lost their previous two matches, getting swept by Weber State and falling in four to Idaho State.
Head coach Romana Redondo Kriskova is in her 2^nd season at Idaho. She has a 6-45 overall record.
Idaho has hit .155 as a team this season and are allowing opponents to hit .212.
They rank 91^st in the NCAA and 4^th in the Big Sky in digs per set with 14.90.
Kiana Greer leads the Vandals with 3.31 kills per set to rank 6^th in the Big Sky.

SERIES HISTORY VS. THE VANDALS
Idaho leads the all-time series 40-37. The Grizzlies have the edge in Missoula, going 18-17 against the Vandals at home. The Grizzlies are currently on an 8-match winning streak in the series with the last UM loss coming in 2021.

Montana won the first meeting this year 3-0 in Moscow. Delaney Russell led with 12 kills, Gracie Cagle had 25 assists, and Alexis Batezel led Montana with 13 digs. The Griz hit .277 as a team and held Idaho to .115 hitting.

SCOUTING EASTERN WASHINGTON (2-22, 0-12 BIG SKY)

The Eagles enter the week on a 14-match losing streak, including all 12 Big Sky matches. The last win came on Sept. 18 in five sets over Seattle U.
Head coach Jon Haruguchi is in his 4^th season at Eastern Washington. He has an overall record of 38-72.
Eastern Washington went five sets with Montana State on Sept. 24 in their Big Sky opener, but since then have won just six total sets and haven't advanced past the 4^th set.
They rank last in the Big Sky in every major statistical category outside of blocks. They are 3^rd in blocks with 2.37 per set.
The Eagles are hitting .147 on the year and allowing opponents to hit .257. They rank in the bottom 20 nationally in both categories.
Judith Bolomboy ranks 4^th in the Big Sky with 1.08 blocks per set.

SERIES HISTORY VS. THE EAGLES
Montana leads the all-time series 62-45 over Eastern Washington, including a 31-14 mark in Missoula. The Grizzlies won the last meeting and have taken five of the last six against the Eagles.

This is the first meeting this season between the Griz and Eagles.

BATEZEL CLIMBS THE RANKS
Alexis Batezel has continued to climb in the record book at Montana for career digs. The senior libero became the fourth player in program history to reach 1,400 career digs last week. She enters Thursday's match with 1,419.

She now trails Brittney Brown by 33 digs for 3^rd place. Batezel is averaging 4.71 digs per set this season, which is the 4^th highest average in program history. She currently ranks 29^th in the NCAA and 2^nd in the Big Sky in digs.

PIERCE CHASES SINGLE SEASON RECORD
Sophomore middle blocker Sydney Pierce has the chance to make some Montana history in the final stretch of the season. The Billings product is hitting .338 this season, which would be the 4^th 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 7th in the Big Sky Conference in hitting percentage and 123rd in the NCAA entering the week. She has hit over .400 11 times on the year and over .700 three times.

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 .232 is the 2^nd-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 (.367) is on pace to break that record while Olivia LaBeau (.333) is having a top five season all-time in terms of hitting percentage for Montana.
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 10-match winning streak this season was the longest for the program since 1994 and tied for the 5^th longest all-time.
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 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.