Griz sweep Redhawks to open ASICS Invitational

Thursday, September 3

Corvallis, Ore.

3:00 PM (MT)

Montana

2-1,0-0Big Sky

Seattle U

2-2,0-0WCC

Team	1	2	3	Final F
Seattle U	18	23	20	0
Montana	25	25	25	3

Photo by: Ashley Davis

9/3/2026 5:26:00 PM | Volleyball

Box Score

By: Montana Sports Information

Montana opened up the ASICS Invitational in Corvallis, Ore. with a statement victory over Seattle U on Thursday afternoon, sweeping the Redhawks in straight sets. The Grizzlies won the first and third sets handily and received some clutch play from a freshman to pull out a tight second set to secure the sweep.

The Grizzly offense came out hot and hit .265 for the match with head coach Allison Lawrence using her entire travel roster over the course of the three sets. They dominated the first with a .325 hitting percentage and held Seattle U in check for the entire match at just .160 hitting.

The win improves Montana to 2-1 on the year after an opening week split against Central Michigan and Washington State.

"Our main goal was to ball handle to a level that we could evenly distribute our offense," Lawrence said. "I didn't think we necessarily did that on first contact consistently, so our passing was in and out, but I think we did it well during rallies because our middles and rights were very involved and hitting well."

Freshman Isa Taylor, who has started all three matches for Montana, had her best performance in a Grizzly uniform with 10 kills on .308 hitting, both career highs. She also had two huge kills with Montana trailing 23-21 in the second set that helped swing that result in Montana's favor.

The first set saw the teams feel the match out a bit with neither side able to get a run going. Outside of an early 3-0 run by the Griz, the sides mostly traded points with seven early ties and three lead changes.

Montana's offense got hot at the right time, starting with a kill from Isa Taylor that made it 13-12 Montana. She added another kill and Sophia Vella and Sydney Pierce had one each during a 4-0 Grizzly run. After a point from Seattle, it was the play of Gracie Cagle that sparked another 3-0 run that made it an extended 7-1 stretch for the Grizzlies.

The Griz were already leading 21-14 in the first set when they got another piece of good news. Sophomore Mylee Blake, who missed the first week of the season with an injury, subbed in for the final points of the set.

Blake, on her first attack, recorded a kill. The sophomore averaged 2.31 kills per set as a freshman and is the second leading returner on the team in terms of kills. She made an instant impact with three kills on just six swings in the first set.

"One big highlight was Mylee going in on the left," Lawrence said. "Whenever you get put into the game, you are expected to perform. She went in and had a series of kills right away, passed well, and just executed in general."

Montana hit .325 in the first, its best offensive set of the season, pulling away for a 25-18 win with seven different players recording a kill. They were clinical on the attack with 16 kills to just three errors. The only blemish for Montana in the first was three service errors to combine with zero aces, but they more than made up for it with the impressive offensive display.

A 3-0 start in the second set quickly swung back into Seattle U's favor with a 6-0 run that forced Montana to take an early timeout. The Grizzlies leaned on Sophia Vella, who had a terrific first couple of sets, to get a kill and reset the momentum.

The two sides were tied at every point from 13 until 21, trading points back and forth with neither side able to take control. It was Seattle that finally broke the streak of ties, scoring two straight to force a Montana timeout at 23-21.

Taylor came out of the timeout looking like a veteran already. Lawrence called the freshman's number on back-to-back points and Taylor delivered with a pair of kills to tie it up at 23-all. The freshman recorded five kills in the second set, the most by either side.

"I think that was a great response for (Taylor) from last week where she passed really well and was put under pressure in serve-receive, but wasn't able to find her attacking rhythm," Lawrence said. "She got back out there today and scored a lot against double blocks and out of system and I think just has really good management swings. She allowed us to settle down in moments when we needed to and that's big-time work from a freshman.

The point that followed may have been the biggest of the match. Tied at 23-all, Josie Blazina blasted a ball straight over the net onto the floor on the Seattle U side. The point was initially given to the Redhawks on a net touch from Blazina. Lawrence challenged the call.

The challenge was successful, flipping set point in favor of Montana. Now up 24-23, the Grizzlies went to Vella for the final point of the set. The Grizzlies hit .250 in the second to take it 25-23.

The momentum swing from the challenge continued into the third and, ultimately, final set. Montana had two runs of at least five straight points as they lead 10-1. The big lead in the third allowed Lawrence to rest some starters and give the first match action of the season to several players.

Kaylee Paulson and Elle McCandless both recorded their first kills as Grizzlies in the final set as Montana cruised to a 25-20 win in the final set.

"We got a lot of people in today and I think in the gym there were a lot of momentum changes that we had to ride and be on our heels a bit and react to them," Lawrence said. "Then we would get our feet under us and get the momentum again. It felt a little topsy-turvy, but still we were physical, we were good, we took care of the ball when we needed to, and we got it done."

Taylor led Montana in kills, followed by Russell with eight and Blazina and Vella with seven each.

"I think (Vella) was another highlight," Lawrence said. "She looked a bit out of rhythm last week, but this match we went to her a lot and she was able to score and had some really impressive moments that grabbed momentum."

Gracie Cagle had 31 assists, averaging over 10 per set, and finished with a double-double with 10 digs. The setter also had five kills on .714 hitting in another impressive offensive performance.

Russell led Montana with 12 digs followed by Sanderson with 11.

Blake only played in the first set but left a large impact on the match with her three kills and her attitude on the floor.

"We need more of what Mylee brought, which is the hunger to go into the game and have an immediate effect on the game, and execute on the level that has been on the court," Lawrence said. "Especially when you go in during low pressure situations when we are up, that has to happen across the board for our overall competitiveness to feel more consistent.

The Grizzlies and the Redhawks will meet again later this season at the Zags Volleyball Classic in Spokane, Wash. Montana now leads the all-time series with Seattle 3-2.

The Grizzlies will face off with host Oregon State on Friday night. Lawrence faces off against her alma mater in Corvallis for the first time as a head coach. The Grizzlies beat the Beavers in 2024 in the only previous meeting between Lawrence and her former school.

"I think it will be a great challenge," Lawrence said. "They are similar to Washington State where they will be way more physical, way faster, and they are at home. We get a chance to respond to last weekend and we are going to have to make a response from today and shore up some things to be at our best. It is going to take our best, but we are excited."