Shorthanded Griz fall in Portland

Thursday, October 8

Portland, Ore.

8:00 PM (MT)

Montana

5-11,1-4Big Sky

Portland State

6-10,2-3Big Sky

Team	1	2	3	4	Final F
Montana	24	18	26	21	1
Portland St.	26	25	24	25	3

Photo by: Scott Larson/Portland State Athletics

10/8/2026 10:52:00 PM | Volleyball

Box Score

By: Montana Sports Information

Montana lost one starter last week in Isa Taylor and was down another on Thursday night as middle blocker Sydney Pierce couldn't go. The deficit proved to be too much on the road as the Griz fought hard but fell in four sets (26-24, 25-18, 24-26, 25-21) to Portland State.

The Grizzlies (5-11, 1-4 Big Sky) held the Portland State offense in check for much of the night as the Vikings (6-10, 2-3 Big Sky) hit just .192 in the match. Montana couldn't muster up enough offense on the other side as they were held below .100 hitting.

"It was nice to have some people that haven't been in the lineup as much step up and do their jobs tonight," head coach Allison Lawrence said. "The most frustrating part of that match is that we were within striking distance of winning sets one and four and to me it came down to us just individually not doing our jobs. There were some dropped responsibilities in the end game and that was tough."

The service game that has been so key for Montana this year was also negated by the Vikings. The Griz led the Big Sky in aces entering the match with nearly two per set but recorded just three total on Thursday with seven errors from the service line.

Several Grizzlies stepped up to have big performances in the absences of Taylor and Pierce. Mylee Blake, playing in her home state of Oregon, led Montana with 10 kills on .200 hitting. It matched a season high for her.

Elle McCandless, thrust into the starting lineup for the first time in her Grizzly career, had four kills on .273 hitting to go with a team-high six blocks. McCandless had played in just two sets all season prior to Thursday night.

"She provided some stuff blocks that we desperately needed. I think she came in and assumed a big role and executed it with poise," Lawrence said. "She had some kills and defensively provided a lot of structure and influenced the game defensively and made us better on that side. It was great to see her come in and do that."

Despite the new-look starting lineup, Montana came out of the gates well in Portland. The Grizzlies got the first two points of the match and led 5-2 early. Portland State settled into the match and tied it up at 7-all, and from there the two sides were hardly separated.

They were tied again at 8, 9, and 10 as they traded points back and forth. The lead didn't stay on one side for long as there were seven total lead changes in the first set, which was more than the total number from three of Montana's first four matches.

Montana had a 3-0 run capped by a kill from Kaylee Paulson to take a multiple-point lead at 12-10, but PSU answered back with three straight of their own. The Griz pulled back in front 18-16 before a 4-0 run from Portland State got the hosts to 20 points first to force a timeout.

The Griz still trailed at 22-20 before a service error from Portland State started up a Grizzly rally. Sophia Vella and McCandless blocked an attack from Alivia Eikenberg on the next point to tie it up and another kill from Paulson gave Montana the lead.

An error from Portland State handed the Grizzlies set point at 24-22. The Vikings went to their preseason All-Big Sky pick Eikenberg down the stretch, and she delivered with a kill and then a service ace to tie it up at 24-all.

The Viking run continued as Maryn Hall was part of a block and then recorded a kill to end the set on a 4-0 PSU run.

The run to end the first gave the hosts a boost coming out in the second. Where the first set had plenty of lead changes and ties, the second featured zero of each as Portland State rolled to a big win.

The Vikings won the first five points and never let Montana back within three the rest of the way. The Griz had a 4-1 run late to garner a bit of momentum heading into the break, but they would finish with a negative hitting percentage as PSU took it 25-18.

The toughness that Montana showed at the end of the second may have proved beneficial in the third set. The Griz led 7-5 early and really started to pull away with a 4-0 run to make it 12-7. The depth continued to be a key as Blake, Wright, and Russell each recorded a kill in quick succession during the run.

Russell added another kill later that capped off another run of three straight for Montana to make it 18-11. Alex Stone, who had just seven kills on Montana's first 14 matches of the season, recorded one of her seven kills of the night to give the Griz their biggest lead of the night at 20-12.

Stone set a career high for kills on Thursday night, stepping up as Montana has switched to a 6-2 in the previous two matches.

The Griz reached set point at 24-18 and looked to be in complete control, but the Vikings made things interesting late in the set, scoring six straight to stave off the Griz and tie it up at 24-all.

The gym against them, and the confidence perhaps rattled, Montana came through with a response. They won the next point and then the duo of Vella and McCandless stuffed an attack to win the set 26-24 with a block.

Portland State opened with an early 7-3 lead in the fourth and continued to hold the advantage for much of the set. The Grizzlies were able to get back some momentum with a 4-0 run that featured back-to-back kills from Vella to make it 15-13.

Blake caught fire late with three kills in the final 14 points of the match. It helped Montana turn a 21-17 deficit into a 21-21 tie as they came from behind and looked close to forcing a fifth set after a service ace from Sanderson.

The Vikings shut the door for good with a 4-0 run to end it at 25-21 in the fourth.

Sanderson had a match-high 24 digs in a valiant performance as she kept the ball up with several miraculous plays throughout the night.

Gracie Cagle led the Griz with 18 assists and added 10 digs for her seventh double-double of the season. Annika Wright recorded her first career double-double with 13 assists and 10 digs.

"I think our team is more committed than ever in figuring it out and I think we're going to," Lawrence said. "The belief is there, the work ethic is there, we just have to execute our responsibilities more consistently. We can't just rely on heart and hustle, we have to play the game and execute system and tactics and responsibilities consistently. I think we are most of the time, but then there are clusters of individual dropped assignments where we get into a deficit and can't recover."

Montana will now travel to Northern Arizona for a Saturday morning match against the Lumberjacks. NAU defeated Montana State on Thursday night to improve to 3-2 in league play and 10-7 overall.