HONOLULU, Hawai'i – The Montana State University Billings volleyball team rallied back to force a fifth set against California State University-East Bay, but the Yellowjackets fell short in the opening game of Chaminade's Hawai'i Challenge on Sept. 10.
 
"Unfortunately, today wasn't our day," MSUB head coach Casey Williams said. "We had a hard time getting and staying in system throughout the match. I have full confidence in this team, and I can't wait to get back out on the court tomorrow."
 
The Yellowjackets (3-2) took the first set, then couldn't capitalize in the next two until junior Skylar Reed took over in the fourth set. The Buckeye, Ariz. native rattled off five of her 16 kills in the fourth set, plus dropped in a key service ace between the Pioneers' lines to tie the game at 22-all to carry the Yellowjackets to the fifth set for the first time all season.

QUICK HITS

• Skylar Reed's 16 kills were not only her season-high, but also a team-high.
• Senior Bayli Monck finished with a 12-kill, 10-dig double-double.
• Senior Joelle Mahowald chipped in nine kills and three solo blocks.
• Freshman outside hitter Tiffany Chandler tied her career high with eight kills.
• The Yellowjackets had six solo blocks to CSUEB's one, mostly due to Joelle Mahowald and Hannah Hayden's defensive efforts.
• Freshman libero Christine Funk made the start once again and finished with 21 digs, four assists and a career-high three service aces.

 
MATCH STATS

• MSUB hitting: .163 overall, (.357 set one, .086 set two, .120 set three, .219 set four, .000 set five)
• CSUEB hitting: .190 overall (.097 set one, .323 set two, .194 set three, .161 set four, .167 set five)
• Service aces: MSUB 10, CSUEB 13
• Digs: MSUB 70, CSUEB 61
• Blocks: MSUB 9.0, CSUB 9.0
• CSUEB was led by Breyan Ashley's 16 kills.

 
PLAY-BY-PLAY
 
Everything came up MSUB in the first set. The match was close until five-all, when Joelle Mahowald's first block of the night sparked a Yellowjackets' run. A trio of kills from Tiffany Chandler, Mahowald and a dexterous, off-speed tip from Skylar Reed gave MSUB a commanding 23-15 lead. A block from Hannah Hayden punctuated the first set, giving MSUB a 25-15 win.
 
In set two, CSUEB jumped out to an early lead, but an ace from Christine Funk tied things up at 4-all. The Pioneers threatened to pull away, but a block from Mahowald out of an MSUB timeout led to a 7-2 run from the Yellowjackets to get within four at 16-12. With their backs against the wall, the 'Jackets scored on three-straight CSUEB set points. Reed started the rally with her second -consecutive kill of the set at 24-16, followed by CSUEB blocking a Bayli Monck kill out of bounds. Hashbarger dumped the ball to the back left corner to make things 24-18, which prompted a CSUEB timeout. On the ensuing play, however, the Pioneers took the second set, 25-18.
 
In the third set, Cal State East Bay took a 5-1 lead before the Yellowjackets rallied with back-to-back kills from Mahowald and Chandler. Mahowald wheeled around from left to right before spiking the ball into CSUEB's front line to cut the lead to 12-6, but another run made the score 16-8, Pioneers. With Cal State East Bay threatening to pull away once again, MSUB rattled off six-straight points to pull within four, thanks to kills from Chandler and Monck, plus Funk's third service ace to make the score 21-16. Out of a CSUEB timeout, Monck and Mahowald teamed up for a block on the right side to pull within four points for the first time since the beginning of the set. Yet the set ended in another 25-18 result in favor of the Pioneers.
 
Staring at a 2-1 deficit in the fourth set, Reed took over.
 
Storming back from being down 8-4 in the fourth, Reed notched her first of five kills in the set to pull the Yellowjackets within two at 10-8. Hailey Carroll came in to serve, which soon led to yet another kill from Reed to make the score 11-9, Pioneers. During a long stretch of serves from Chandler, Reed's back-to-back kills tied, then gave MSUB an 18-17 lead – the team's first since 2-0 – which turned the tide for the rest of the set. Both teams see-sawed until Hannah Hashbarger connected with Reed for her fifth and final kill of the set to tie the score at 20-all.
 
Although the Pioneers threatened once again to pull away late with a 22-20 lead, everything unraveled after an MSUB timeout. Reed saw the Pioneers serve long out of the timeout, then one-upped it by dropping in a service ace between Cal State East Bay's front and back lines, which put the 'Jackets in the driver's seat. With Reed back behind the line to serve, Hashbarger set up Monck for a kill, the Pioneers made a bad set and Hannah Hayden put the exclamation point on the fourth set.
 
Playing in the fifth set for the first time all season, the Yellowjackets got an early lead thanks to an errant Pioneers serve, then by a block from Chandler.
 
Diving saves from Mahowald and Hashbarger kept the point alive, then CSUEB's attack erred out of bounds to make the score 5-3, Pioneers. Both teams would tie the score at 2, 6 and 9-all, with MSUB coming back from down three points on two occasions. Trailing 5-2, Chandler's aggressive swing led to a Pioneers' error at the net, giving the Yellowjackets the serve and sparking a 3-0 run that included Reed's 15^th kill.
 
An ace from Hashbarger made Pioneer bench call timeout with the score tied at nine apiece. Out of the timeout, CSUEB took back the lead, yet a Monck slam tied it up at 10-all. The Pioneers would surge one more time to pull away with a 15-10 win.
 
THE BUZZ: Skylar Reed was named the St. Vincent Healthcare Player of the Game for her team-high 16-kill effort, plus her fourth set play…Friday marked the first time MSUB had gone to the fifth set all season...This was the second-ever matchup between Cal State East Bay and MSU Billings.
 
UP NEXT: The Yellowjackets will play host team Chaminade tomorrow at 1 p.m. local time (5 p.m. MST). The game will be broadcasted on Stretch Internet with full audio commentary. Broadcast and live stat links can be found at msubsports.com.