Just when it looked like Dakota State was going to manage a double sweep, Montana Tech pulled the plug on the idea.
Dakota State owned a 3-0 volleyball sweep over the Orediggers earlier this season in Frontier Conference action and pulled out to a 2-0 lead on them Wednesday night in the Montana Tech HPER Complex.
Montana Tech rallied and pulled out a 21-25, 23-25, 25-20, 25-23, 15-7 win. (Match stats are available on Montana Tech’s godiggers.com Web site).
The Orediggers, with only three seniors on their roster, wallowed in confidence in the tie-breaker. They jumped out to an 8-4 lead by the midway break of the set and shot to 10-4 on a kill by Kinnidi Willmore and block by Kennedy Oman. After suffering a couple of errors, Montana Tech tallied again on a Willmore kill and a block by Madison Biery. The Trojans fought back with Sydney Wathen scoring a kill. A hitting error sent possession back to the Orediggers and Abby Clark put them at match point with a block. Ellie Reinertson fired the serve and Willmore ended the match with a kill.
Willmore, Emmy Green and Anaconda’s Malia Harris are the only seniors on the Montana Tech roster.
The Trojans frustrated Montana Tech in the first set, passing the Orediggers for a 2-1 edge and then surviving six Montana Tech rallies that tied the score. Tristyn Maras smashed a kill off a Montana Tech defender’s fingertips for set point, 24-21, and Biery’s hard shot sailed just wide and Dakota State had its win, continuing a streak that began a few weeks ago in Marshall, South Dakota.
The Trojans jumped out comfortably on the Orediggers in the second set before Montana Tech sliced the margin to 24-22 by set point. Payton Treadwell’s block shaved the spread to 24-23 before Maras notched the kill for Dakota State’s early 2-0 match lead.
A close third set saw Montana Tech get out to 16-13 on the opposition to force a timeout. Treadwell thumped a kill for 17-13 and, after trades, Willmore nailed a kill to reach set point at 24-20. Harris sizzled the last serve and Biery buried the kill for the Orediggers’ first win over the Trojans this season.
Montana Tech found its rhythm and confidence. It rolled out ahead 20-13 in the fourth set. Dakota State clawed back but a Treadwell kill chiseled in set point, 24-21, before Trojan Hallie Brulflat hit long and the Orediggers had forced the tiebreaker set.
The win put Montana Tech at 14-9 for the season, including a 10-7 conference record. The Orediggers will be home on Thursday for a 7 p.m. league match against Bellevue (Nebraska) in the Montana Tech HPER Complex.
Dakota State is also 10-7 in the Frontier Conference and stands 14-8 for the year.
— by Bruce Sayler
