BILLINGS, Mont. – Fresh off their most exciting win of the season, the Montana State University Billings volleyball team will travel to Alaska this weekend having won two in a row. The Yellowjackets will see the University of Alaska Fairbanks on Thursday October 11 at 7 p.m. PCT followed by the University of Alaska Anchorage of Saturday, October 13 at 7 p.m. Both Alaska schools defeated the Yellowjackets in Billings earlier in the fall so this week will be a chance for MSUB to even the score with both.
 
"Last week the team really showed their will to win and because of that we were able to execute better than in previous matches," said head coach Casey Williams about MSUB's win over Central Washington on Saturday. "We were also a lot more aggressive and our defense was really strong."
 
The matchups this week will be an indicator of how much the Yellowjackets have grown since the beginning of the season. Alaska Anchorage defeated MSUB 3-0 at Alterowitz Gymnsium on September 14 and Alaska Fairbanks followed with a 3-0 win over the Jackets on September 15.
 
"The first time we played the Alaska schools, I didn't think we really showed them what we were capable of as a team but I think that rolling with this momentum and knowing now that we can beat some good teams in the GNAC should give us confidence heading into this weekend," said Williams. "I think we match up well with both Anchorage and Fairbanks so hopefully we will be able to turn them in our favor this time."
 
MSUB is currently in ninth position in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference standings with a 3-7 record (9-10 overall) after moving up two spots in the last seven days. They are also 2-2 at home, 1-6 away, and 6-2 at neutral locations. A win on Thursday coupled with a loss by Northwest Nazarene could move them into a tie for eighth.
 
One player making a big impact in the Yellowjacket lineup lately is sophomore libero Izela Alvarez. Alvarez had 55 digs in the pair of five-set wins over Northwest Nazarene Thursday and Central Washington Saturday. She had 28 of those digs against the 12-3 Wildcats. Alvarez was awarded GNAC defensive player of the week for her contribution to MSUB's wins on October 8.
 
Maddi Vigil is another player to watch for MSUB. Vigil leads the team in kills with 202 and holds a .137 hitting percentage. Vigil, Alvarez, Bayli Monck, Taylor Sherman, Eavan Taylor, and Miranda McConnell have been the standard starters for the 'Jackets with a mixture of Kylee Clarke and Alexa Smythe splitting the duties of setter.
 
The Yellowjackets have ridden a seesaw of results this fall. The season began with six straight victories on the road against non-conference opponents but they faltered thereafter and lost the next eight in a row. Six of the eight losses came against GNAC opponents and the team has had to work hard to recover and draw back into playoff contention.
 
"I think the key for us is just to play at a consistent level because we've struggled with consistency throughout the season," Williams said. "We have to continue to be aggressive. I like where we're at with our rotation and running a six-two gives us another offensive weapon on the right side. If we can find that consistency within this lineup and execute our game plan we have a good chance."
 
MCCONNELL MAKES HER MARK: Miranda McConnell continues to be a model of consistency for the Yellowjackets this season. In 76 sets, she has 141 kills and a .278 hitting percentage. On defense, the senior has 53 block assists and six solo blocks along with 21 digs.
 
 
SET UP FOR SUCCESS: Similar to 2017, Casey Williams has found nearly equal playing time this season for setters' Kylee Clarke and Alexa Smythe on the floor. Clarke started the season as the 'Jackets primary setter but was forced out of the lineup due to injury for a period, giving more opportunity for Smythe. Upon Clarke's return, the two have split time on the floor setting the ball for Skylar Reed, Vigil, and a host of others. Clarke has 451 assists in 53 sets while Smythe has 287 assists in 37 sets for MSUB.
 
PACED BY ACES: Although the frequency of service aces has slowed since first quarter of the season, the Yellowjackets are still third in the GNAC in the category. Alvarez leads the team with 25 total service aces and is followed closely by Bayli Monck (23), Alexa Smythe (23), Taylor Sherman (18), and Maddi Vigil (15). In early September, the Yellowjackets were ranked as high as 13^th in NCAA Division II for total service aces.
 
'REED-ING IT RIGHT: On September 18, Skylar Reed had a breakout match for the Yellowjackets and posted 20 kills and a .340 hitting percentage against Rocky Mountain College. Since then, Reed has continued to earn playing time and has 82 kills in her freshman season. Most recently, Reed made seven kills against Central Washington and 18 kills against Northwest Nazarene this week.

 
Scouting the Nanooks (7-10, 5-5 GNAC)
Game Day: Thursday, October 11 – 7 p.m.
2017 Record: 12-17, 5-15 GNAC
Head Coach: Brian Scott (1^st season)
 
UAF will play Alaska Anchorage on Tuesday before Montana State Billings visits Fairbanks on Thursday. Like the Yellowjackets, the Nanooks are riding a recent hot streak, having defeated their last four GNAC opponents. Most recently, UAA shutout Saint Martin's University on the road Saturday 25-15, 25-18, 25-20. Lahra Weber played exceptional in the match and recorded 11 kills and zero errors for a .478 hitting percentage. Makena Overby provided the defense with 16 digs and Kim Wong made one solo block and nine block assists against the Saints.

Nanooks' sophomore setter Cate Whiting was selected as the sports imports/American Volleyball Association's Division II Volleyball Player of the Week. Whiting had 75 assists, 10 blocks, 12 kills, and 20 digs over the weekend for UAF.
 
Alaska Fairbanks is tied with four teams at 5-5 in the GNAC standings. They rank sixth in hitting percentage (.168), fifth in kills (11.80 per set), sixth in blocks (1.97 per set), fifth in service aces (1.56 per set), and seventh in digs (16.15 per set).
 
The Nanooks have a 14-player roster, including eight returners and six newcomers. Five native Alaskans are featured on the squad. Lahra Weber, a sophomore outside hitter from Berlin, Germany ranks third in the GNAC with 3.48 kills per set for a total of 212 kills. Freshman libero Makena Overby hails from Fontana, California and has risen to fifth in the GNAC for digs per set (4.87) with 297 digs overall.
 
The Nanooks set a program record last year with five conference victories and have already tied that mark at the mid-way point of 2018. UAF is 6-2 when playing at neutral site locations but has struggled at home (3-7) and on the road (3-8). The team is under the guidance of first year head coach Brian Scott, who has previous experience coaching Division I talent at Weber State University (Utah) and Utah State University.
 
All-Time Against Alaska: The Yellowjackets are 29-28 all-time against the Nanooks dating back to their first meeting in 1984. MSUB is 8-2 versus UAF in its' last ten matchups.
 
Last Time: Alaska Fairbanks slammed 47 kills against Montana State Billings on September 15 and took the match 25-18, 25-22, 26-24. For MSUB, Vigil and Monck led the way with nine kills apiece. Vigil missed her ninth double-double (at the time) by just one kill and also added 11 digs. Alvarez made 12 digs and Clarke was the leading setter with 21 assists.
 
Scouting the Seawolves (15-3, 8-2 GNAC)
Game Day: Saturday, Saturday, October 6 – 7 p.m.
2017 Record: 19-11, 14-6 GNAC
Head Coach: Chris Green (11^th season)
 
Alaska Anchorage comes to Billings on a four-match winning streak. On October 6, UAA got past Seattle Pacific 3-2 after winning the fifth set 15-12. Four players posted double-digit digs for the Seawolves and Eve Stevens had 18 kills and hit .389.
 
The Seawolves have 15 players on the roster including seven freshmen, four sophomores, one junior, and three seniors. Stevens, a freshman ranks sixth in the GNAC for hitting percentage at .326. She also has the most total kills of anyone in the top ten with 224. Chrisalyn Johnson is another major offensive contributor with 204 total kills.
 
The UAA defense has been spread out evenly between several players on the back row. Taylor Noga leads the team with 296 digs while Anjoilyn Vreeland (275), Johnson (229), and Ellen Floyd (157) are all well over the 100 dig mark.
 
Alaska Anchorage ranks fourth in the GNAC in hitting percentage (.213), fourth in kills (12.93 per set), third in blocks (2.49 per set), and first in service aces (1.70 per set). Johnson and Noga are tied for 12^th individually in service aces with 23 apiece.
 
The Seawolves have qualified for the NCAA Tournament five straight seasons. In 2016, head coach Chris Green won the AVCA National Coach of the Year and the team made its first appearance in the NCAA Division II National Title Match. The Seawolves fell to #1 Concordia St. Paul 3-0.
 
All-time Against Alaska Anchorage: The Yellowjackets are 10-44 in the all-time series against the Seawolves. Alaska Anchorage is 8-2 over its' last ten meetings.
 
Last Time: UAA defeated MSUB 3-0 in Billings on September 14. Johnson led all players with 13 kills and a .333 hitting percentage. Vigil had a double-double with 10 kills and 13 digs for MSUB. The Yellowjackets have gone 3-5 since the two teams last met. Conversely, Alaska Anchorage is 5-1 since September 14.
 
TEAM SNAPSHOT: MSUB has nine returning letter winners from last season and three roster newcomers. The team finished 9-21 (5-15 GNAC, 9^th) in 2017.
 
AROUND THE LEAGUE: No. 6 Western Washington (15-3, 10-0 GNAC) is showing no signs of letting go of its' stranglehold first place grip in the GNAC standings. The Vikings have won fifteen matches in a row and have not been beaten on their home court all year. Central Washington (14-3, 8-2) and Alaska Anchorage (15-3, 8-2) are tied for second and four teams are tied for third with 5-5 records.
 
Cate Whiting (Alaska Fairbanks) earned GNAC offensive player of the weeks and finished with 75 assists, 10 blocks, 12 kills, and 20 digs to lead the Nanooks to two road wins and extend the team's winning streak to four matches. Also nominated: Eve Stevens (Alaska Anchorage), Shelby Mauritson (Central Washington), Elyssa Rose (Concordia), Maddi Vigil (Montana State Billings), Michaela Hall (Western Washington).