Lindsey Branch, UMW Sports Information
SIOUX CITY, Iowa. – The No. 16 seeded Montana Western women's volleyball team (25-9) earned an upset win over Northwestern (Iowa) in this NAIA Women's Volleyball National Championship pool play match to advance out of pool play for the first time in school history.
"We knew today was going to be a really tough match with Northwestern playing really well right now, but we felt really confident in our matchup with them," Head Coach Katie Lovett said.
The No. 1 seeded Raiders entered the matchup with an overall record of 32-0, falling to the Bulldogs for their first loss of the season in three sets to one by scores of 25-19, 17-25, 25-19, and 25-20.
"We minimized our unforced errors and capitalized on offensive opportunities. I was really impressed with out defense in blocking and backcourt dialing in to shut down our offense. I am incredibly proud of this team and what they have been able to accomplish so far," Lovett continued.
How It Happened
A pair of kills from Jazi Smith and Olivia Rosborough got Western rolling to an 11-6 lead in the opening set of the game. Despite the Raiders comeback led by Savonne Sterk, the Bulldogs pressed on and utilized a 4-0 scoring run that saw Peyton Vogl tally a pair of kills to take a 19-12 lead. The Bulldogs took the opening set 25-19 after posting an impressive .438 hitting percentage.
In the second set, Montana Western opened the scoring but Northwestern quickly responded with a kill from Zavyr Metzger to level the game. Western made a late push, narrowing the score to 19-14 through a series of well-executed blocks, but the Raiders held firm and secured the set with a decisive kill by outside hitter Jazlin Douma to take a 25-17 victory over the Bulldogs.
Smith fueled a set three opening 6-0 run after she recorded a pair of kills to swing momentum back in favor of the red and black. Jordan Olson broke a short NWU run with a kill from the right side to once again send the Bulldogs into a 4-0 scoring run that pushed them out 15-9. They remained in the driver's seat for the remainder of the set and won 25-19 to take a 2-1 lead.
Montana Western once again took control of the game early on, taking a 5-2 lead behind another kills from Smith. Northwestern managed to close the gap to 10-7 on a service error, but Montana Western maintained their lead, extending it to 18-11 following a kill by Dani Brown. Up 20-12, the Raiders made a late push and forced Western to use both timeouts through a 6-0 scoring run that brought the game back within two. A block from Vogl and Rosborough broke the run and Western outscored the Raiders 5-2 to cap the set 25-20.
Notables
The Bulldogs had a strong offensive performance, with Smith leading the team with 19 kills and Martin adding 10 kills. Smith also added a team high of 21 digs.
Taylor Petersen had 22 assists and Madisyn Frazier contributed 16 digs in her solid defensive showing in the back row.
UMW outblocked NWC by 18 total blocks (UWM 32 assisted; 12 assisted, 2 solo NWC). Olson and Martin led the Bulldog's defensive effort at the net with nine assisted blocks apiece.
The Bulldogs combined to hit .219 in the game and recorded an impressive 75 total digs in the defensive effort.
Up Next
The Bulldogs will face off against the no. 8 seeded Corban University (Ore.) at 10am in the Tyson Events Center.
Corban enters the matchup after winning pool H to advance to the Quarterfinal matchup. The Warriors are 26-5 on their season and advanced to the game after defeated the College of Idaho 3-0 and Aquinas College 3-2 in their pool.
The winner of the game will advance to the semifinals on Dec. 9 at 4 p.m. MT.
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