BILLINGS, Mont. - MSU Billings built up leads in each of the three sets before No. 13 Alaska Anchorage came storming back. The Yellowjackets fell to the Seawolves 25-22, 25-17, and 25-17 Saturday in Great Northwest Athletic Conference action.
 
"We had some really good moments tonight where we played some of the best volleyball I've seen us play all year," MSUB head coach Lisa Axel said. "We just have to find a way to play at that level all of the time. Stormy was hitting really well tonight and mixing in some off-speed that was very effective. I thought Taylor Sherman did a great job on defense tonight and stepped up when we put her in as libero during the second set."
 
Montana State University Billings (4-16, 3-8 GNAC) hit .345 (14-4-29) in the first set, but dropped in the final two sets ending at .132. MSU Billings was ahead by as many as five points in the first frame and up early 8-7 in the second set before the Seawolves found their rhythm.
 
Led by Katelynn Zanders' 15, UAA finished at .262 with a 43-31 advantage in kills over MSUB.
 
Alaska Anchorage (17-2-, 9-2 GNAC) needed to battle back in the first two sets, but ran away with the third set in the final third of the frame.
 
Zanders was the lone player to finish in the double-digits in kills. Morgan Hooe led all players with 36 assists. Kyla Militante-Amper finished with 14 digs and three assists.
 
MSUB's Ashlynn Ward completed nine kills with Stormy Siemion added six. Kyndal Williams finished with 27 assists with Taylor Sherman ending the match with a team-leading 11 digs.
 
Neither team had a good night with the block. The Seawolves finished with a 6.0-4.0 advantage.
 
In the opening set, MSUB led early by as much five at 12-7, but the Seawolves steadily chipped into the MSUB advantage, closing the set on a 5-1 spread.
 
The Yellowjackets jumped out 9-6. MSUB collected a huge point for 12-7 after a defensive get from Mataia Roderick on a ball that bounced off the ceiling. Crawling back in, UAA added two points, but two points from Williams, the first a setter's dump and a service ace, served as counter points for the Yellowjackets.
 
A kill from UAA's Erin Braun broke up the streak, but the 'Jackets won it back on a kill from Mikelson and a UAA error.
 
Heading down the stretch, the teams traded points. Ward came up clutch for MSUB on points 19 and 20.  The junior pulled up on the outside for a booming kill into the open back court, but a nice soft touch from UAA's Zanders pulled to within two, 19-17. On a miscommunication between Williams and Marrs, UAA added a point, and after a service ace from Hooe tied the set at 20, MSUB called for the first timeout of the match.
 
Ward came up clutch again, giving the Yellowjackets a chance, putting a ball back down on a Seawolves overpass for 21-20.
 
MSUB's Abbie Mikelson finished with a kill, but Anchorage earned a set point and Mikayla Sweet finished the frame on a service ace for a 25-22 first set win.
 
The Yellowjackets again started with the lead in the second set. UAA's Julia Mackey made it 7-all on a shot down the right side. A kill off the block from Ward won the ball back for the Yellowjackets.
 
The Seawolves opened up a 5-point lead ending on a shot from Zanders, pushing MSUB to call its first timeout behind at 13-8.  Zanders added three more kills and Braun pulled up on a Yellowjackets' bad pass for 18-11.
 
MSUB pushed back with three including a big block on the right side from Mikelson. On a kill from Siemion, MSUB got as close as 21-17. The Seawolves closed the set on four straight for a 25-17 second set and 2-0 lead.
 
The Yellowjackets fell behind early in the final frame, but battled back for a 9-7 lead. The Seawolves came up with points from Zanders and Braun to knot the score at 10. Building a 19-13 lead, UAA began to pull away.
 
Siemion with an off-speed attack won a point for MSUB and Audri Marrs added another, but the Seawolves remained in control, finishing the set 25-17 on a kill from Zanders.
 
THE BUZZ: Sherman named the night's St. Vincent Healthcare Athlete of the Match...Williams added a match-high three service aces...Williams and Sherman tied with eight digs each.
 
UP NEXT: MSU Billings heads out on the road for contests against Simon Fraser on Thursday, Oct. 29, followed by a contest against Western Washington on Saturday, Oct. 31.