Northern volleyball plays strong in Arizona tournament

A long trip to Arizona could have been a daunting challenge for a season-opening tournament. But a young Montana State University-Northern volleyball team handled the visit to the OUAZ Tournament like a savvy veteran team in mid-season form.

Playing Friday and Saturday night in Surprise, Arizona, Northern went 3-1 to improve to 4-1 on the young season.

Head coach Jerry Wagner's team opened the tourney by beating Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University Friday at the OUAZ tournament. The Skylights won in three sets (25-17, 25-17, and 25-15). The Skylights were led by Alana Graves, who tallied seven kills and five blocks. Josie Hasler added seven kills hitting a percentage of .350. Kaitlin Murdock led the team in digs with 12. Macee Murphy led the team in assists with 12. Emily Feller added five kills, 10 digs, and 11 assists.

MSU-N added a tough, five-set win over Ottawa University Friday night. The Skylights won in five sets (19-25, 25-22, 25-22, 22-25 and 15-7). The Skylights were led by Alyssa Pretty Weasel, who tallied 19 kills and a hitting percentage of .182. Alana Graves and Jessalyn Chvilicek added 11 kills. Emily Feller led the team in digs with 22 and assists with 29.

Northern returned to the court for two more matches Saturday. The Skylights beat College of Idaho Saturday at the OUAZ tournament. The Skylights won in four sets (25-17, 25-19, 18-25, and 25-21). The Skylights were led by Graves, who tallied 12 kills and 10 blocks (eight assisted). Hasler added 10 kills with a hitter percentage of .250. Murdock led the team in digs with 18. Feller led the team in assists with 22.

Northern finished the tourney with a four-set loss to Park University-Gilbert Saturday night. The Skylights fell by scores of 25-27, 16/25 and 25-27.

Northern will now have a week off before making their home debut in the Frontier/North Star Conference Challenge Sept. 9-10 in the Armory Gymnasium.