Northern volleyball opens the season on the road

This past week, the Montana State University-Northern volleyball team got its fall season started with a match as well as several scrimmages. The Skylights’ played many different teams on the road this past week, but their lone match was against Valley City State University on Thursday morning. While the Skylights were on the road in Valley City, North Dakota, the Skylights won, 3-1, against Valley City State University by scores of 25-23, 25-22, 23-25 and 25-20 to start the season 1-0.

“I think we played very well in the match and had everyone step up and play at another level,” MSU-N head coach Jerry Wagner said. “It was a very hard-fought match and we found ways to come through and win some long rallies.”

In the first set, the Vikings started strong to take a 5-3 lead. But the Skylights responded with a 6-2 run to take a 9-7 lead. During this stretch, Emily Feller and Jessalyn Chviliceck recorded a pair of kills.

The teams then exchanged runs. After the Vikings scored three straight points to retake the lead, the Skylights responded with a 7-0 run to take a 16-10 lead. Josie Hasler led the Skylights with a pair of kills during this run.

The Vikings responded with a run of their own to cut the Skylights’ lead to 22-21. But the Skylights went on a 3-1 run to win the first set for a 1-0 lead in the match.

Just like the first set, the Skylights and Vikings exchanged runs in the second set. After the Skylights tied the set, 21-21, the Vikings scored a point to retake the lead. However, the Skylights scored four straight points to win the set and stretch their lead to 2-0 in the match.

The third set was another battle that saw the momentum shift back and forth between the Skylights and the Vikings. The Skylights held the lead for most of the set, but the Vikings never fell too far behind. The Vikings were eventually able to catch up and tie the set 19-19. The teams then exchanged points, but the Vikings pulled out the 25-23 win in the set to extend the match. While the Skylights had a strong match, this set demonstrated there is still room for improvement.

“We could be better at serve receive. We served tough but not consistently,” Wagner said about their serving in the match.

The Vikings carried their momentum into the fourth set as they jumped out to a 9-5 lead. But the Skylights kept with as they scored ten straight points to take a 15-9 lead. The Vikings tried to recover but the Skylights held them off to win the set, 25-20, for a 3-1 victory in the match.

Several Skylights had strong starts to the season. Chviliceck led the team with 15 kills in the match-while Alana Graves recorded ten kills of her own. Kaitlin Murdock also played well in the match with 23 digs and a pair of service aces.

The Skylights also played several scrimmages over the week in Valley City, North Dakota to prepare for the season. On Wednesday, the Skylights played three scrimmages against the Jamestown University junior varsity team, the Dickinson State University junior varsity team and the North Dakota State College of Science team. Each of the scrimmages were 45 minutes long, so Wagner experimented by playing his players at different positions that they might play in the season.

Then on Thursday, the Skylights played another scrimmage in Valley City, this time against Bemidji State University. After playing Valley City State University earlier in the day, the Skylights only played two sets against Bemidji.

On Saturday afternoon back home at Armory Gymnasium, the Skylights played an exhibition match against Medicine Hat College. The Skylights played four tough sets against Medicine Hat, but they won all four of them to cap off the weekend.

With this slate of scrimmages and their first match of the season behind them, the Skylights now focus on the rest of their non-conference schedule over the next few weeks. After getting some action this week, Wagner likes where his team is at to start the season and hopes to see them continue to grow over the course of the season.

“I’m very high on this group,” Wagner said. “We’re going to play hard and we can find ways to win with this group.”

The MSU-N volleyball team will next play in the Ouaz Volleyball Tournament this weekend in Surprise, Arizona. The Skylights will start the tournament on Friday at 3 p.m. with a match against Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University.

MSU-N def. Valley City State University

25-23, 25-22, 23-25, 25-20

MSU-N - (kills-aces-blocks) Hailie George 0-0-0; Bailey Egan 0-1-0; D'Lorah Cedillo 0-0-0; Alyssa Pretty Weasel 6-0-5; Macee Murphy 0-2-0; Josie Hasler 0-1-2; Kaitlin Murdock 0-2-0; Jessalyn Chviliceck 15-0-0; Alana Graves 10-0-7; Marlee Bender 2-0-3; Emily Feller 6-0-4. Totals 20-6-21.

VCS - (kills-aces-blocks) Bailey Nelson 17-3-2; Ava Willie 0-0-0; Hanna Wieland 0-0-0; Delani Clarke 0-0-0; Morgan Nelson 6-0-1; Lexi Leroux 0-1-0; Ellie Rush 0-0-0; Danielle Hagler 5-0-5; Morgan Frejie 3-0-2; Emma Lucas 11-0-2; Brooke Anderson 0-0-0; Sadie Hansen 6-1-2; JayCee Richter 0-1-0. Totals 48-6-14.