Rivals: Skylights host Argos Saturday

The rivalry between the Montana State University-Northern volleyball team and the University of Great Falls Argos is a special one. It's special for a number of reasons, but a big one is the proximity of the two schools, and the recruiting ground both teams battle on for players.

But it's also an intense rivalry because both teams have had their fair share of success in the Frontier Conference, and it's usually at the expense of the other. Recently, Northern has been the dominant team in the series, and the Argos are coming to Havre to try and change that Saturday night.

Northern (1-5, 5-14) will host UGF (3-3, 12-8) in a Frontier Conference volleyball rivalry match Saturday night at 7 inside the Armory Gymnasium. The Skylights have won three straight in the series and are coming off a four-set win at UM-Western last Saturday.

But, as is usually the case when the Skylights and Argos meet, records, past and present are thrown out the window, and Northern head coach Bill Huebsch expects nothing more than a tough battle from UGF Saturday night.

"They (Argos) have maybe been a little bit up and down this season," Huebsch said. "But when I look at them, I see a team that's a lot better than people realize. They've played and won some very tough matches this season, they are coming off a sweep on the road last weekend, and that's never easy. So they are coming in here playing pretty well right now, and they always seem to play us tough here."

The Argos did indeed sweep on the road last weekend, beating both Western and Westminster, teams Northern split with. UGF also has a bevy of close wins and close losses so far in conference play, but the Argos have shown that they are a Frontier contender right now.

"They (Argos) are talented," Huebsch said. "They are very athletic. They have good players at every position. And when they are in system, and when they're blocking well, they are really tough to beat. They are a team, that when they are playing consistently, can beat anybody in this league in my opinion.

"So a big key for us is, we have to serve them extremely tough," Huebsch said. "It's always a goal of ours to win the serve-receive battle, but in this match, we have to serve really well. If we do that, and we block like we've been blocking the last few matches, I think we'll be OK."

Northern needs to serve UGF tough in order to get the Argo offense out of rhythm, because when they're on, the Argos are indeed a dangerous club.

Led by 6-2 sophomore Madison Wilhem, the reigning Frontier Player of the Week, the Argos are fourth in the Frontier in hitting, and second with a whopping 860 kills on the season. Wilhelm has 217 kills so far and is the focal point of head coach Arunas Duda's attack. But Wilhelm isn't alone. Senior Alyssa McEwan (6-1) has 183 kills and 12 solo blocks, while outside hitter Gabby Bienkowski (5-10) has 123 kills on the season. Sophomore middle blocker Tiffany Marks (6-3) gives UGF a big presence at the net, while freshman setter Dani Norling has done an outstanding job running UGF's 5-1 offense so far.

"Again, I think UGF is better than a lot of people realize," Huebsch said. "(Madison) Wilhelm is having a great sophomore season, their freshman setter is doing a great job, and when they are blocking well, they are really tough to beat. So this is going to be a big challenge for our team."

Northern will be up for it though. The Skylights got their first conference win of the season last Saturday in Dillon, and that should have instilled some more confidence in what is a very talented Northern roster.

The MSU-N offense, which is still a work in progress, is led by Dayna Jensen's 194 kills, while Jessica Wilcox is really coming on strong. She has 136 kills to go along with 18 blocks. Erin Jensen has 140 kills and 12 blocks on the season, while both Janelle Hoff and Jaden Lynch continue to set for the MSU-N offense. But where the Skylights have really picked up the pace in recent matches is on defense.

Northern is fourth in the Frontier with 147 blocks, and Wilcox, Erin Jensen and Carlie Haefner have been doing a great job of developing a presence at the net. Behind the block, libero Sydney Stolearcius has a team-high 251 digs, while sophomore Sarah Stringfellow is really playing well, and has 119 digs on the season.

But stats only tell part of the story. Consistency and momentum are goals the Skylights are reaching for and last Saturday's win against Western is hopefully the start of a momentus next few weeks. Northern's match with UGF is the start of a three-match home stand for the Skylights, and all Huebsch wants to see is continued improvement and more consistent play. He says, if MSU-N does those things in its next three home matches, then the Skylights will continue to be on pace for their ultimate goal, which is to be playing their best volleyball when November rolls around.

"I feel like we've continued to improve all season," Huebsch said. "We've gotten a little bit better every single week. And the kids are working hard to keep getting better. And if we continue to get better, and we continue to be more consistent and keep eliminating some of the mistakes that have held us back in some of these matches, when November gets here, we're going to be OK.

"Right now, this league is still pretty wide open," he continued. "Rocky is obviously the cream of the crop, but after that, I think anybody can beat anybody on a given night. And we need to believe that. We need to believe we can win every match we play, including this weekend against UGF. We need to keep gaining confidence. And I think we're getting there."

Saturday night's match between Northern and UGF will start at 7 p.m. in the Armory Gymnasium. The Frontier will take its annual bye week next week, and the Skylights will return to action with home matches against Lewis-Clark State Oct. 17 and Montana Tech Oct. 18.