Skylight netters take to the road

The Montana State University-Northern volleyball team is set to open its season this weekend in Dickinson, N.D., in a tournament hosted by Dickinson State University. Head coach Lisa Handley believes it will be a great early season test for her Skylights.

"The tournament in Dickinson is a great way for us to start the season," Handley said. "We are going to play some very good competition and it will give us a good idea of where we are as a team."

The Skylights will play matches against Black Hills State and Jamestown College today and will play MISU and South Dakota Tech on Saturday.

Handley is also looking forward to seeing some of the Frontier Conference teams that will be participating in the tournament.

"So many teams in our conference lost key players, so it is hard to say who the favorite is right now until we see them in Dickinson," Handley said.

The Skylights are looking to build on last season, when they were 5-9 in conference play and finished fourth in the Frontier Conference tournament including an upset victory over defending champion Rocky Mountain College.

The Dickinson tournament is part of an 11-day season-opening road trip for the Skylights, who will move on to the Moorhead State Invitational in Moorhead, Minn., after the tournament in Dickinson.

"It is going to be a long road trip, but with the tough teams we will be facing, it is a great test for us," Handley said.

The Skylights' first match is today at 10 a.m. against Black Hills State and then they will play again at 2 p.m. against Jamestown.