SEATTLE – Despite keeping the score within reach in the second and third sets Saturday at Brougham Pavilion, the Montana State University Billings volleyball team took a 3-0 defeat (25-15, 25-22, 25-20) at the hands of host Seattle Pacific University in Great Northwest Athletic Conference play.
 
A trio of Yellowjackets finished with a team-high nine kills, with Olivia Schwartz, Caty Havekost, and Lily Gentz leading the way on the attack. Avary Spoja put together a complete performance for MSUB, with three kills, three service aces, two digs, and a solo block to rack up 7.5 points. Hannah Hashbarger led MSUB with 26 assists, and Christine Funk had a team-high 12 digs. The Yellowjackets fell to 7-10 overall and are now 0-9 in GNAC play with the defeat.
 
Hannah Hair led all players with 10 kills, while committing zero errors to swing at .667 in the match. Ashley Antoniak added nine kills and Sarah Brachvogel had eight, while Lindsey Lambert contributed 19 assists and Abigail Cunningham matched Antoniak with a team-high eight digs. Seattle Pacific improved its record to 8-9 overall and is now 6-3 in conference play with the victory.
 
Early momentum swayed towards MSUB, with three straight points coming from Spoja and a kill by Schwartz making the score 11-10 in the opening set. A well-taken timeout helped the Falcons reset however, as the hosts went on an 8-1 run which featured two kills apiece from Maddie Pruden and Brachvogel. SPU never looked back after that, closing out the first set 25-15.
 
The Yellowjackets managed to keep pace in the second set, pulling within a single point midway through when a kill by Gentz cut the Falcons' lead to 14-13. A 3-0 run by the Falcons gave them some breathing room up 21-17, but the 'Jackets bounced right back with a 3-0 push of their own that included two assists and an ace from Hashbarger. A combo block by Hannah Hayden and Havekost again cut the deficit to a single point at 23-22, but a block on the other side by SPU followed by a kill from Antoniak ended the second set 25-22.
 
The 'Jackets stayed within striking distance in the third set as well, but a 4-1 run by the Falcons midway through gave them a 15-10 lead that they never relinquished. Back-to-back aces by Spoja and kills from Schwartz and Gentz gave MSUB a 5-1 run, and trimmed the deficit to just 20-19 late in the third. But SPU won the next four points to steal back momentum and close out the sweep.
 
THE BUZZ: Spoja was selected as the St. Vincent Healthcare Player of the Game…MSUB is now 13-36 against SPU and is 5-19 in road matches against the Falcons.
 
NEXT WEEK: The road stretch continues for MSUB, which plays at Alaska next Thursday at 4 p.m. AKT/6 p.m. MTN and at No. 9 Alaska Anchorage next Saturday at 7 p.m. AKT/9 p.m. MTN. Live coverage for the road matches will be available online here.