MSU-N spikers back at home

Three weeks ago, the Montana State University-Northern volleyball team played a thrilling five-set match at UM-Western. And in the end, it resulted in the Skylights’ first victory in Frontier Conference play.

Saturday night, inside the Armory Gymnasium, the Skylights (1-6, 9-14) are hoping for a repeat performance when they host the Bulldogs (0-7, 7-14) in a conference rematch. Northern’s only home match this week will get underway at 7 p.m.

In that match against Western in Dillon, the Skylights played some of their best volleyball of the conference season. They raced out to a 2-0 lead, then fought admirably as Western roared back in front of its home fans. And even though the Skylights won that match, Northern head coach Bill Huebsch said his team won’t take the Bulldogs for granted Saturday night.

“It’s that time of year when we’ve played and seen everybody now,” Huebsch said. “And we know that, on any given night in this league, anybody can beat anybody. You look at our record and Western’s record and it may not look that great, but this league is so difficult this year. Everybody is very good. And that includes Western. They are so much improved from last season. And we’ve played well against every team in this league, and we know we’re going to have to play really well against Western, too.”

The Skylights have played well, but now is the time when they really need to peak. Northern has just five matches left before the Frontier tournament, and only two of them are at home. So, it’s the stretch run now, and Huebsch is hoping his team can find more ways to overcome some of the many close calls they’ve had this season.

“I couldn’t be more proud of the effort, and how hard the girls work every day,” Huebsch said. “And, at times, we’ve been so close to beating the very good teams in our league. We’ve been right there in sets against everybody so far. Now, we just have to find ways to get over that hump. And there’s still time for us to do that.”

Putting critical points away is one big key for Northern heading into the final weeks of the season. The Skylights have been very powerful on offense at times, led by Cassie Krueger (276 kills), Korrie Stephenson (184 kills), Jessica Wilcox (166 kills), Erin Jensen 160 kills) and Cydney Auzenne (116) kills. Emily Russell has also had a strong season setting for the Skylights, but, Northern is still hitting just .190 on the season and is ranked last in the league with 11.7 kills per set. Defensively, MSU-N has gotten a big boost from libero Jacy Vining, but blocking has also been troubling at times for the Skylights. MSU-N averages just 1.7 blocks per set and is sixth in the league with 144.5 total blocks. So, those are numbers that need to improve if the Skylights want to make a late-season charge.

“Our serve-receive has been really strong all year,” Huebsch said. “But, we’re just not able to put balls away when we really need to, when those sets reach the critical points. I know we have the capabilities to do it, we just need to find ways to finish when we have those opportunities.”

And the Skylights should get plenty of opportunities Saturday night. Western is last in the Frontier in both hitting and blocking, which should give MSU-N’s powerful offense a chance to thrive. Still, the Bulldogs are talented, and have proven to be a tough out for anyone in the Frontier.

Western is led by Joanna Avery’s (6-0, MB) 152 kills, while Tessa Miller (6-0, MB) and Bailey Wilson (5-11, OH) are also dangerous at putting the ball away. Callie Hanson is a good setter for Western, and Brianna DeCock (5-6, L) and Dylan Fowler (5-5, L) are strong in the back row.

Still, as talented as Western is, Northern wants to hold serve at home. The Skylights love playing in front of their home crowd, and Saturday night is the second-to-last opportunity to do just that. Northern’s final home match comes Nov. 7 when the Skylights host UGF.

“We’ve got three on the road and two at home left,” Huebsch said. “Obviously, we always want to play well at home. The girls will be fired up for the match.”

Saturday night’s match between Northern and UM-Western starts at 7 p.m. in the Armory Gymnasium. The Skylights are back on the road next week, with trips to Lewis-Clark State and Carroll College.