Skylights win on senior night

Heading into its regular-season finale, the Montana State University-Northern volleyball team was looking for a strong finish. Well, the Skylights got just that as they defeated Rocky Mountain College, 3-1, (20-25, 25-23, 25-18, 25-18) at Armory Gymnasium this past Saturday.

In the first set, the Bears jumped out to a 9-3 lead. The Skylights battled back to cut their deficit to 14-13, but the Bears responded with a 4-0 run to take an 18-13 lead. The Skylights tried to keep pace, but the Bears went on to win, 25-20, for a 1-0 lead on the night.

Looking to even the match, the Skylights jumped out to a 16-8 lead to start the second set. The Bears responded with a 5-0 run to cut their deficit to 16-13, but the Skylights got back on track to build a 24-20 lead. The Bears stayed alive with three straight points, but the Skylights scored to win, 25-23, to tie the match, 1-1.

The Skylights and Bears fought to an 8-8 tie to start the third set. The Skylights and Bears continued to go back and forth until the Skylights pulled ahead for a 14-11 lead. The Skylights then took control with a 5-0 run to take a 19-11 lead. The Bears could not put up a response as MSU-N went on to win, 25-18, to take a 2-1 lead in the match.

The Skylights then raced out to a 15-6 lead to start the fourth set. The Bears could not wrangle away momentum as the Skylights pulled away for the 25-18 win to win the match in four sets. Alana Graves finished the match with 14 kills while Macee Murphy led MSU-N with 27 assists. Bailey Egan led the Skylights with 34 digs.

With the win, the Skylights finished the regular season with an overall record of 12-13 and a record of 4-6 in the Frontier Conference. The MSU-N volleyball team will next compete in the Frontier Conference Tournament in Great Falls starting this Friday.