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Armory Beginning: Northern volleyball team makes home debut tonight

Three weeks on the road is a long time for a volleyball team. But, the Montana State University-Northern Skylights are hoping the wait to play at home was worth it.

Northern will get that chance tonight when the Skylights begin Frontier Conference play by making their home debut against the Rocky Mountain College Battlin' Bears. The action starts at 7 inside the Armory Gymnasium, and the Skylights couldn't be more excited.

"We've been talking about this match since the first day of practice," senior setter Emily Russell said. "We're so excited to finally play on our home court. We're ready to go."

The Skylights (1-8) should be excited because they have one of the best home-court advantages in the Frontier. And, they also get the first crack to take down the two-time defending Frontier champion Bears (4-10).

And while veteran head coach Bill Huebsch is also excited to finally be playing at home this season, he's also looking forward to seeing just how much a rigorous non-conference schedule, one in which the Skylights played six teams ranked in the NAIA Top 25 over the last three weeks, has helped his young team grow and prepare for Frontier play.

"I know we've gotten better during the preseason," Huebsch said. "You can see the progress we've made. It's been tough, going out on the road and playing the quality opponents we have. But, I think it's going to really pay off in the long run for us, and when this team puts it all together, they're going to be a lot of fun to watch."

Putting it all together means Northern finding a bit more consistency than it has showed during the first three weeks of the season. The Skylights are a solid fourth in the Frontier in hitting percentage, led by offensive standouts Cassie Krueger, who has a team-high 114 kills, as well as Cydney Auzenne and freshman Timi Severson. But, Northern has also struggled late in sets, and defensively, while freshman Hannah Amtmann is off to a strong start, leading the team in digs, and newcomers Haley Yoder and Jillian Nickens are looking strong at the net, Huebsch said his team must start to eliminate more of the unforced errors that have cost them chances to win, or, extend matches so far this year.

"This team is very talented," Huebsch said. "But we're also young and in some areas, still inexperienced, and at times, we've played that way. We'll be going along, point-for-point with very good teams, and then we'll have a run of four five straight points where we had unforced errors. So, we're still searching for that consistency that it takes to win at this level. We're still working on that.

"And against the teams we're playing this weekend, we're going to need to find that consistent level that we've shown at times," he added.

Indeed, Rocky might not be the tall, powerful team that has won the last two Frontier titles, but the Skylights know the Bears will still be tough. RMC did lose a ton of talent to graduation last season, new faces like Savanna Smith (6-0) and Kylie Hadley (5-11) are emerging, and the Bears have a strong setter in Hailey Copinga (5-10).

"Rocky is a lot like us, they are a young team that has played streaky at times this season," Huebsch said. "But, they're still going to be tough. They are always well-coached and they always seem to have a very strong presence at the net. But I do think this is a good matchup for us, and if we do a better job of controlling the ball, controlling the lace of the game, we'll be fine."

While tonight's home-opener is exciting, Northern must turn right around and go back out on the road, traveling to Dillon Saturday night to face perhaps the most improved team in the Frontier – the UM-Western Bulldogs. Western returns a host of veteran players for first-year head coach Brian Lewis, led by senior middle blocker Brittany Erickson (5-11), a returning All-Conference performer. Outside hitter Bailey Wilson (5-11) and senior setter Callie Hanson (5-7) give the Bulldogs a solid nucleus to work with.

"Western returns a lot of experience and talent," Huebsch said. "They have really improved a lot and they are not going to be an easy opponent that you can just expect to go on the road and get a win against. I'm really impressed with what they've done so far this season, and we're going to have to go in there very prepared and ready to play."

And that brings Northern back tonight, where the Skylights are hoping their first home match can be the start of something special this season. Yes, the Frontier will be tough every night, including tonight's first match against RMC, but Huebsch said his team has worked hard, has improved every week, and its record doesn't reflect the kind of team that Northern fans will see on the floor tonight in the Armory Gymnasium.

"This team comes to work and works hard to get better every single day," Huebsch said. "And I do believe we have gotten better every match we've played this year. I think this team has a chance to do some great things this year, and I know they're really excited to be playing at home. I know I'm really looking forward to it."

Tonight's match between the Skylights and Battlin' Bears starts at 7 in the Armory Gymnasium. Northern visits UM-Western on Saturday night before returning home to face UGF next Thursday.

 

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