BILLINGS, Mont. – Keeping its 2022 record spotless on Saturday, the Montana State University Billings volleyball team swept a pair of matches to close out the Yellowjacket Invitational at Alterowitz Gym.
 
The Yellowjackets (4-0) held tough for a 3-0 win over Chadron State (28-26, 25-23, 25-23), before cruising past South Dakota Mines in the tournament finale 3-0 (25-23, 25-28, 25-13). After losing its first two sets of the season Friday, MSUB won 12 consecutive sets to emerge victorious in all four games at the tournament.
 
"I loved the way our team worked together today," said MSUB head coach Casey Bonner. "It was cool to see the growth and to watch us get better with each set. Hannah (Hashbarger) and Alexis (King) moved the ball around and got us in great one-on-one situations. We were relentless on defense and finished strong against a good South Dakota Mines team."
 
Match 1 – MSU Billings 3, Chadron State 0 (28-26, 25-23, 25-23)
 
Three sets that could have gone either way all ended up in the hands of the Yellowjackets, who won three straight points to turn a 26-25 deficit into a set victory that proved to be momentous. A 5-0 run by the Yellowjackets early on made the score 14-10 in favor of the hosts, but it proved to be the largest lead of the opening set for either side.
 
MSUB commanded the second set into the middle portion, building a 19-13 lead after a kill from Caty Havekost. The Eagles made their biggest move of the day after that however, rattling off seven consecutive points to grab a 20-19 advantage. The Yellowjackets kept their cool, and used kills from Jahsita Fa'ali'i and Lily Gentz, before an attack error gave them the second set 25-23.
 
A back-and-forth third set led to a 14-14 deadlock, and the score stayed within two points for the rest of the frame. The Eagles took advantage of back-to-back errors by MSUB to tie things at 23-23, before Paiten Langston and Fa'ali'i each hammered down kills to seal the match for the 'Jackets.
 
Fa'ali'i led the attack with a career-high 14 kills, and completed a double-double as she added 14 digs and four service aces. Hannah Hashbarger, who was named the Yellowjacket Invitational Most Valuable Player, contributed 25 assists while freshman Alexis King chipped in 13. Havekost and Gentz each finished the first match of the day with seven kills.
 
Aiyana Fujiyama had a team-high eight kills for Chadron State, while Breshawna Kelly had 18 assists and Rylee Greiman led the team with 15 digs. The teams were evenly matched offensively, with MSUB holding a slight .146-.140 hitting percentage advantage.
 
Match 2 – MSU Billings 3, South Dakota Mines 0 (25-23, 25-18, 25-13)
 
The Hardrockers (1-3) battled at the outset of the match and stayed close in the first set, but the Yellowjackets steadily progressed as the match wore on and reached their peak in the final set to complete the sweep.
 
Gentz had 10 kills and no errors on 25 attempts for a .400 hitting percentage, while Langston added seven kills and Fa'ali'i six in the three-set affair. Hashbarger added 16 more assists to her tally and made it a second straight double-double with 10 digs, and Funk led the team with 14 digs in the back row.
 
Jacey Koethe was a bright spot for the Hardrockers, leading the team with 11 kills and hitting .320. Kiley Metzger had 15 assistss and Hannah Benes led the team with 12 digs.
 
The Yellowjackets led 21-18 and 23-20 in the opening stanza, but South Dakota Mines refused to give in and won the next two points to pull within one. A service error by the Hardrockers was followed by a set-winning kill by Langston, and the Yellowjackets were off and running.
 
Although the second set started off close, with the score tied at 8-8, MSUB won 11 of the next 13 points to pull ahead 19-10 in a scoring burst that defined the set. The Rockers won three straight facing set point to make things interesting, but a bad set made the match score 2-0 in favor of the 'Jackets.
 
A well-taken timeout by South Dakota Mines interrupted an early six-point burst by MSUB in the third set, and the Hardrockers won the next three points to pull the score close trailing 7-6. MSUB won nine of the next 12 points however, building a 15-9 lead and never looking back after that. The deficit proved too much for South Dakota Mines to overcome, and the Yellowjackets limited their mistakes while spreading the offense effectively on their way to another sweep.
 
THE BUZZ: Fa'ali'i was selected as the St. Vincent Healthcare Player of the Day…her previous career high in kills was 12, which she achieved last September against Northwest Nazarene…Hashbarger and Gentz joined Fa'ali'i on the all-tournament team…MSUB is now 5-2 all-time against South Dakota Mines…MSUB is now 7-6 all-time against Chadron State.
 
NEXT WEEK: The Yellowjackets take their unbeaten record on the road, for three matches at the Chadron State tournament in Nebraska. MSUB will have a rematch against the Eagles, while also taking on University of Sioux Falls and Minot State University at the Chicoine Center.