Orediggers block the Skylights in the Armory

The Montana State University-Northern volleyball team has already shown it can toe-to-toe with some really good teams. And while the final scores weren't what the Skylights were hoping for, they proved it again, this time, against the best team in the Frontier Conference.

Thursday night in Armory Gymnasium, the Skylights were swept by the No. 17 Montana Tech Orediggers, by scores of 25-20, 26-24, 25-18, dropping MSU-N to 2-3 in conference play.

But, as far as sweeps go, the match was by no means an easy one for the now 5-0 Orediggers. And the end to the second set was proof of that.

Leading 1-0, Tech ripped off a 7-0 run early in the second, but two Haley Yoder kills and a team block by Yoder and Mikayla Virostek, sparked an 8-2 run by the Skylights. Tech would gain the upper hand again, however, and when Haley Druvystein smashed a ball up in the middle, the Diggers led 24-19.

Northern though, showed not only its talent, but also its fight at that point, though. Two great rallies helped the Skylights stave off two set points, and a third came by way of a Cassie Krueger kill. Another great defensive rally by the Skylights got them to within 24-23 and a smash by Timi Severson one point later tied the set up at 25-25. Druvystein would eventually finish the set off with another kill out of the middle. The comeback took a lot out of the Skylights,and Tech was dominate in the third and final set. But they also showed just how tough they can be.

MSU-N came out strong, too. A Krueger kill gave Northern an early 4-3 edge, and a Severson block led to a 9-8 lead. Tech did get rolling and eventually went on a 6-1 run, but, the Skylights showed toughness then, too, as kills by Severson and Shania Neubauer pushed the nationally ranked Orediggers to the brink in the first set of the match.

Krueger finished with a team-high 10 kills for the Skylights, who had trouble getting over the top of Tech's huge block. Severson would tally seven kills and a block, while Krueger also had 12 digs. Virostek had two of Northern's seven blocks, while Hannah Amtmann led the way wit 25 digs. But in the end, Tech was too tall and too strong. Druvystein finished the match with 12 kills and two blocks, while the Diggers served up four aces to remain perfect in conference play.

Northern will be right back at home Saturday when the Skylights host Lewis-Clark State at 2 p.m. in the Armory.

Montana def. MSU-Northern

25-20, 26-24, 25-18

TECH - Kills 48 (Haley Druvystein 12), Assists 43 (Tori Cheline 26), Aces 4 (Hannah Liss 2), Digs 64 (Nicole Peacock 15), Blocks 7 (Druvystein 2).

MSU-N - Kills 29 (Cassie Krueger 10), Assists 29 (Shania Neubauer 23), Aces 1 (Ashley Ponce 1), Digs 66 (Hannah Amtmann 25), Blocks 7 (Mikayla Virostek 2, Timi Severson 1).