BILLINGS, Mont. – After a thrilling 5-set win over the No. 11 Vikings last Saturday, this week the Yellowjackets welcome another tough conference opponent in Seattle Pacific.
Last week MSU Billings split a pair of conference matches at home, losing to Simon Fraser in five sets, but winning for the first time in the program's history against No. 11 Western Washington.
MSU Billings is now 9-5 and 4-2 in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference.
Highlighted by a new career-high 19 kills from sophomore
Ashlynn Ward, three players from MSUB ended the match against WWU in double-digit kills.
Monica Grimsrud had 16 kills while
Chelsey Walter added 14 on a team-leading .264 attack percentage.
It was a night for the sophomores as defensive specialist
Kimmy Kirk also had a new career-high. Kirk's new number came in the dig column as she totaled 27 digs on the night, nine more than her previous record.
Seattle Pacific is 9-5, 3-3 in the conference. Last week the Falcons lost both matches to GNAC opponents Simon Fraser and Western Washington.
The Falcons lost in four sets against No. 11 Western Washington and in five sets in the match against Simon Fraser.
Senior Madi Cavell is leading SPU and the conference in kills/set with 4.06. The outside hitter was the GNAC Offensive Player of the Week two weeks ago and is No. 6 in the GNAC in service aces. As a team SPU is leading the GNAC in service aces with 1.57/set.
Fellow GNAC Player of the Week honoree, senior Sara Biondi is No. 5 in the conference in hitting percentage at .318. Biondi is also No. 5 in assists (9.15) and No. 3 in service aces (1.02).
The Yellowjackets are 8-25 all-time against SPU. MSUB has lost seven of the last eight matches against the Falcons. MSUB Billings is 5-8 at home against the Falcons. The last time the two teams met, MSUB lost a 5-set battle at home.
MSUB's Walter is No. 2 in the GNAC in hitting percentage with a .353. Last week Walter had 40 kills and 10 blocks in three matches. Ward is No. 15 in the conference with a .253. The sophomore outside hitter had 35 kills and 10 blocks in the same three-match span.
Setter
Kyndal Williams is No. 2 in the conference in assists with 10.38. Williams put-up 140 assists, including 55 against Western Washington last week.
The volleyball match against Seattle Pacific is the culminating event on 'Jacket Saturday. This week seven of the nine in-season sports at MSU Billings will be at home events.
'Jacket Saturday kicks off with Fútbol Frenzy at Yellowjacket Field. The MSUB women face off against No. 22 Western Washington at 1 p.m. Free chili donated by Wendy's and free soft drinks will be provided to spectators while supplies last. Following the women's game, the men's soccer team will play South Dakota School of Mines at 3:30 p.m.
Then, at 7 p.m. MSU Billings will host Seattle Pacific for a volleyball match at Alterowitz Gymnasium.
Live video and live stats for all three events on Saturday will be available. For live coverage, full recaps, and results, please visit msubsports.com.
Thursday, Oct. 2 | Sport | Opponent | Location | Time |
| Men's and Women's Golf | Yellowjacket Fall Invitational | Pryor Creek Golf Course | 1 p.m. shot-gun start |
| Men's Soccer | University of Mary | Yellowjacket Field | 1 p.m. |
| Women's Soccer | Northwest Nazarene | Yellowjacket Field | 3:30 p.m. |
Friday, Oct. 3 | Sport | Opponent | Location | Time |
| Men's and Women's Golf | Yellowjacket Fall Invitational | Pryor Creek Golf Course | 9 a.m. |
| Men's and Women's Cross Country | Yellowjacket Invitational | Amend Park | Men, 10 a.m.
Women, 10:45 a.m. |
Saturday, Oct. 4'Jacket Saturday | Sport | Opponent | Location | Time |
| Women's Soccer | No. 22 Western Washington | Yellowjacket Field | 1 p.m. |
| Men's Soccer | S.D. School of Mines | Yellowjacket Field | 3:30 p.m. |
| Volleyball | Seattle Pacific | Alterowitz Gymnasium | 7 p.m. |
