top of page

Bulldog Volleyball Falls in Five Set Thriller to No. 11 Montana Tech (Full Picture Gallery)

Article UMW Sports Press Release Photos By SWMT News

The Montana Western volleyball team (10-1) lost their first game of the

season this evening after a hard fought five-set battle against the No. 11 ranked Montana Tech

Orediggers (8-2).



How It Happened


Montana Western got off to a hot start, firing on all cylinders. A pair of kills from Peyton Vogl

paired with an Oredigger error put the Bulldogs up 12-9 in the first set. A service ace from the

hands of Morgyn Harrison gave UMW a boost for a 16-11 lead. The Bulldogs went on to

outscore the Orediggers 9-5 down the stretch to win the first set 25-16.


The Orediggers jumped out to a quick 7-1 lead in the first set. UMW struggled to overcome the

Oredigger front, not scoring more than two points in a row throughout the entire set. Montana

Tech would win the set 25-16.


Montana Western came out to play from the start for the third frame. A block from Danyel

Martin and Jordon Olson gave the Bulldogs a lead at 5-4. The two teams continued to trade

points, with Montana Tech taking a slight edge at 17-15. UMW capitalized on a pair of

Oredigger errors along with a kill from Martin to take the lead once again at 19-18. Down 23-22, the Bulldogs went on a 3-0 run to cap off the set on top at 25-23.


The fourth frame proved once again to be a challenge for the Bulldogs. A kill from Jazi Smith

coupled with a block from the pair of Olson and Vogl tied the game at 7. The Orediggers

followed up with a run that flipped the momentum from UMW. The Orediggers won the fourth

set 25-20, forcing a fifth and deciding set.


The fifth frame saw a big kill from KayLee Kopp to give the Bulldogs an edge at 6-5. Despite

best attempts, Montana Western was unable to flip the momentum back in their direction and

was outscored 10-1 down the stretch. The Orediggers finished the matchup on top at 15-7.



Notables

• Tonight’s matchup showed the two team’s powerful fronts, with the two teams posting a

combined 25 blocks in the game.

• Montana Western posted their lowest hitting percentage night of the season after they hit

just .043 across the five-set game, with three sets in the negative column. Montana Tech

hit just .120.

• The Bulldogs were led by Kopp who totaled 12 kills and 17 digs.

• Kelsey Goddard totaled 29 digs. Kaylee Fritz had 27 assists.


Up Next

The Bulldogs are back in action tomorrow with a matchup against the University of Providence Argos at 6 p.m. in the Straugh Gymnasium.


Click on image for full size


52 views0 comments

Comments


bottom of page