– VCSU Volleyball, Sat.

Havre, Montana

Game One

Montana State University-Northern Def VCSU 25-17,25-23,25-20

Game Two

VCSU Def University of Providence 20-25,25-20,23-25,25-18,15-13

HAVRE, MONTANA (UJ) – The Valley City State volleyball team defeated Providence College in a five-set battle to conclude the NSAA/Frontier Crossover on a high note. Final set scores were 20-25, 25-20, 23-25, 25-18 and 15-13.

The Vikings went 1-1 Saturday after falling in a 3-0 match against MSU-Northern earlier in the day (25-17, 25-23, 25-20). VCSU is the only NSAA team to come away from the tournament with a victory. VCSU is now 4-7 overall this season.

“These athletes came back today. They didn’t have to. They rose to the occasion and put a match together,” said head coach Brigitte Greywater. “We might roll a little bit but we’re going to keep chipping away.”

Greywater also highlighted the importance of battling opponents from the Frontier Conference to prepare her team for the conference season. Valley City State hosts Dickinson State on Wednesday for the conference opener. First serve is slated for 7 p.m. in Graichen Gym.

VCSU 3, University of Providence 2
Valley City State came back after trailing 2-1 to take the final two sets and become the only team to defeat the University of Providence over the weekend. Four Vikings tallied double figure kills in the win.

The Argos took the first set 25-20 after pulling away with a 5-2 run late in the set. VCSU answered by taking the second set 25-20, taking four of the final five points including kills from Bailey Nelson, JayCee Richter and Morgan Freije.

VCSU led 17-14 in the third set on a kill from Bailey Nelson, but Providence took four straight points to build an 18-17 advantage. The Vikings continued to battle, trading points with the Argos down the stretch until a pair of kills from Bailey Nelson and Sadie Hansen made it 24-23 and prompted an Argo timeout. Providence held on to take the 25-23 third set and lead the match 2-1.

The third set was all VCSU as they built a 17-11 lead on a service ace from Lexi Leroux. The Vikings held on to take the fourth set 25-18.

Providence then opened the final set strong with four kills and a service ace to lead 5-0 early on. After Providence reached an 8-5 advantage and the teams traded sides of the court, VCSU took a 7-1 run helped by three blocks by the pair of Danielle Hagler and Morgan Freije. Providence inched closer but a pair of service errors turned the set in VCSU’s favor, 15-13.

The Vikings recorded a season-best 11 total blocks (7 assisted, 4 solo) in the match. Morgan Freije assisted five blocks, Danielle Hagler had one solo block and assisted four, and Morgan Nelson had two solo and two assisted blocks.

Sadie Hansen tallied a season-high 41 set assists in the match, paired with 13 digs for a double double. Bailey Nelson tallied 12 kills Saturday followed by Morgan Nelson, Danielle Hagler and Emma Lucas who each recorded 10 kills. Hagler added a season-best 17 digs on defense.

Delani Clarke led VCSU with 19 digs while JayCee Richter added 17 digs for VCSU.

Providence’s Jenna Thorne totaled a game-high 21 kills while Taylor Christiansen led all players with 31 digs in the match. Bella Thompson added 49 set assists for the Argos.

MSU-Northern 3, VCSU 0
Earlier in the day, VCSU fell in a 3-0 match to tournament-host Montana State University-Northern – who also won all four of its matches over the weekend.

The Skylights opened with 17 kills in the first set hitting .433 en route to a 25-17 win. VCSU later took a 7-2 run to catch up to Northern in a 20-20 tie in set two. Northern then finished with a 5-3 rally to down the Vikings and lead 2-0.

The Vikings wouldn’t give up though, taking a 12-8 lead in the third set after five straight points with the help of two Emma Lucas kills. Northern took a time out and the teams continued to keep the set close including a 20-20 tie late in the set. Northern finished with the next five points to put away the 3-0 match.

Bailey Nelson totaled a team-best nine kills while Danielle Hagler and Emma Lucas added eight kills apiece. Sadie Hansen posted 22 set assists while Delani Clarke chipped in 13 assists. JayCee Richter totaled 12 digs and added three service aces in the match.

Northern’s Alyssa Pretty Weasel tallied a game-high 11 kills while Kaitlin Murdock collected 20 digs Saturday. Macee Murphy posted 17 set assists and Emily Feller added 14 assists for the Skylights.