Ellensburg, Wash.- The Montana State University Billings volleyball team (1–17, 0–13 GNAC) dropped a 3-0 decision to Central Washington University (14-5, 10-2 GNAC) on Saturday afternoon at Nicholson Pavilion.
Receiving votes in the latest NCAA Division II AVCA Coaches Poll, the Wildcats lived up to their billing with a strong all-around performance. Central hit .347 as a team, recording 46 kills, seven aces, four blocks, 44 assists, and 51 digs.
Leading the Yellowjackets offensively was
Allie Dorman, who tallied seven kills on an efficient .467 hitting percentage.
Addison Holcomb followed with five kills and a block, while
Kenzie Allen contributed across the board with 11 assists, five digs, four kills, and two blocks.
Reese Sherwood added five assists and a service ace.
The Wildcats controlled the opening set, using a pair of early scoring runs to jump out to a 9-1 lead. MSUB responded with a 4-0 surge behind kills from Mia Moniz, Dorman, and Holcomb, but Central Washington's offense proved too much as the Wildcats took the first frame 25-10.
The Yellowjackets battled back in the second set, keeping pace early and briefly taking an 11-10 lead after capitalizing on seven CWU errors and kills from Moniz and
Stella Scott. The set remained close until the Wildcats went on a late run to pull ahead 18-14, eventually taking the set 25-17.
Central carried that momentum into the third, racing out to a 12-2 lead. MSUB responded with a 5-0 run capped by a big block from Moniz and Scott, then followed with a 6-3 push to trim the deficit to 15-11. However, CWU countered with another 5-0 run to regain control and closed out the sweep with a 25-14 win.
STATISTIC LEADERS
Kills: Allie Dorman (7)
Assists: Kenzie Allen (11)
Blocks: Stella Scott (2);
Kenzie Allen (2)
Aces: Reese Sherwood (1)
Digs: Avarey Stuff (11)
THE BUZZ: Allie Dorman was named Intermountain Health Player of the Game after posting 7 kills on a .467 hitting percentage with six digs, one block, and one assist.
UP NEXT: The Montana State University Billings Yellowjacket volleyball team faces off against Rocky Mountain College for their second matchup of the Rimrock Rivalry at 7:00pm at the Fortin Center on November 4
th before heading to Seattle for a GNAC matchup against Seattle Pacific on November 8
th.