Defending champs beat Griz in four

Thursday, September 24

Greeley, Colo.

6:00 PM

Montana

4-9,0-2Big Sky

Northern Colorado

5-7,1-0Big Sky

Team	1	2	3	4	Final F
Montana	16	25	17	22	1
Northern Colo.	25	22	25	25	3

Photo by: Jesus Ayala/Northern Colorado

9/24/2026 9:08:00 PM | Volleyball

Box Score

By: Montana Sports Information

Montana put up a good fight on the road against the defending Big Sky Champion and preseason favorite Northern Colorado, but fell in four sets 25-16, 22-25, 25-17, 25-22.

The Grizzlies (4-9, 0-2 Big Sky) hit .232 with nearly 50 kills on the night as the offense had its third-most efficient night of the season. They had their best set in the second, hitting .306 with 14 kills and just three errors to pick up a win.

Northern Colorado (5-7, 1-0 Big Sky) proved too strong on the other side of the net as the Bears hit .380, a new season high for a Montana opponent.

There were plenty of encouraging signs for Montana against one of the top teams in the league year after year. They matched a season high with eight blocks and had seven service aces, leading UNC in both categories.

"After Tuesday, we talked about how there are tactical and technical changes we can make and it's not just about working harder," head coach Allison Lawrence said. "We took that mentality into the match tonight. We made some adjustments with some of our choices and some minor things and it felt like it opened things up for us. I think there were some great lessons in that there are small adjustments that we can make that will pay us back big-time."

Delaney Russell had 14 kills on .200 hitting and Montana got good production from its middles with 17 combined kills from Josie Blazina and Sydney Pierce. Sophia Vella also had another good performance on the right with nine kills, which brings her total to 19 on the first week of league play on .250 hitting.

Madeline Sanderson also recorded a career high with 21 digs while Gracie Cagle had 35 assists and a pair of kills.

"I think when Josie and Sophia are in the front row together and we're able to run them on a lot of different combinations, we're just getting better at that every night," Lawrence said. "I think Gracie ran a really smart offense and when we were ball handling and putting her in three-option situations she was making great decisions."

Blazina helped Montana get off to a solid start early with multiple kills in the first minutes of the match. It was a competitive first set early with seven tie scores up to the 10-10 mark. Northern Colorado used a 3-0 run at that point to start to pull away.

The Bears had a 6-2 run to force Lawrence into both of her timeouts in quick succession, but the Grizzlies couldn't find their footing again as they fell 25-16 in the opening set after a 6-1 run to end it.

Blazina had three kills in the opening set, starting off what would be a solid night for the middle blocker. She led Montana with three blocks and had nine kills with just a single error.

"I think that was one of her best matches, so that was fun to see," Lawrence said of Blazina. "Josie is really turning some corners when it comes to her production and her responsibilities. She took a big step forward in her game in the last week and a half."

Russell and Kaylee Paulson each had two kills in the first seven points of the second set as Montana and Northern Colorado traded blows back and forth, tying each other at the first five points of the second.

Montana had a 4-0 run with a service ace from Pierce and a kill from Blazina included to go up 9-7. The teams traded three-point runs from there with Montana going back up 12-10. The duo of Sanderson and Paulson helped Montana seize control around the media timeout as two aces from Sanderson and two kills from Paulson led to a 4-0 run and a 17-14 Griz lead.

The hosts fought back late, getting within a point on two different occasions. The first time they did, Russell ripped back-to-back kills to make it 23-20. When they got within a point again, Lawrence used a timeout and dialed up an attack for Vella out of it. She made a run up the middle and blew the ball past the defense, giving the Griz set point.

They held on for a 25-22 win to tie it up at one set apiece. The Griz hit .306 with four service aces in the second set. Russell and Paulson combined for nine kills in the set.

Montana had some momentum and the teams came out trading points early in the third set again. Then Northern Colorado went on an extended 11-3 run to go up by six points and force Lawrence into a timeout before the media mark of 15.

"The biggest disappointment is I feel like in the third set we come off a momentum boost and then going into the third we just seemed to have a mental lapse," Lawrence said. "It wasn't aggressive errors that we were making it was just a dropped assignment individually sprinkled throughout those first 15 points. It felt like UNC relaxed, we got on our heels, and that was the disappointing part for me."

They extended the lead from there, going up by as many as 11 points in the set. The Griz got some momentum back late with a 5-1 run, but it would only get them to the 17-point mark as Northern Colorado went up 2-1.

Montana went up 6-3 in the fourth set, taking that momentum from the end of the third and carrying it over. The biggest moment of the match followed as Northern Colorado went on a 7-0 run to flip the Grizzly lead into a four-point Bear advantage.

The Griz would get within a single point on five occasions over the rest of the set, but couldn't quite get over the hump. Northern Colorado ended things at 25-22 to win their conference opener.

The loss brings to an end a five-match run over the previous eight days for Montana. They played a tournament in Spokane last weekend, hosted rival Montana State on Tuesday, and quickly turned things around for a road match against the preseason favorites.

"Of course, fatigue and the grind have to play a part of things, but to me we are fit and in such good hands with our full staff with training room and strength and conditioning," Lawrence said. "I think that's what was disappointing, there was nothing about our energy or our desire to win that looked fatigued, it was a mental lapse and I think we're tougher than that."

There was great balance from the Grizzlies yet again with Cagle setting up an efficient match, but she wasn't the only Grizzly setter making plays on Thursday night. Annika Wright had a season high six assists in Greeley.

"Annika had a lot bigger setting responsibility in certain moments and we sided out on her setting," Lawrence said. "She provided a big spark and ran the offense when it was her turn to do so and just did a great job. I think that was a big difference maker in my mind."

After spending the first four weeks on the road and splitting the opening week of league play with Tuesday and Thursday matches, Montana returns to a more traditional schedule next week.

The Grizzlies will host Eastern Washington and Idaho inside Dahlberg Arena on Thursday and Saturday. It will be a good opportunity for Montana against the two teams that missed the Big Sky Tournament last season, but a pair of squads that are much improved in 2026.

"We look forward to being at home and getting our feet under us a little bit and not running around like crazy," Lawrence said. "When I think back to five games ago, the amount that we've grown is exponential. If we can keep fighting for that steep trajectory of growth, then I think it's going to be really exciting."