MOSCOW, Idaho—Different venue same result for the Vandal volleyball team on Thursday night. Idaho swept visiting Montana State for the second time this season, finishing a perfect 6-0 in the regular season against the Bobcats.
Idaho (10-14, 7-4) returned to Memorial Gym Thursday, spending the last two weeks on the road. Senior Katelyn Peterson led the Vandals with 12 kills and a .370 hitting percentage, adding nine digs to her line. Sophomore Becca Mau closed the night with nine kills and a career-high .643 attack percentage. Senior Tineke Bierma added seven kills and four blocks for the Vandals.
“It felt good being back at home,” Peterson claimed following the match. “We always play great at home. The offense was flowing. It is almost effortless when we click like tonight.”
Montana State (3-16, 1-10) forced Idaho to regroup early in the opening set. The Bobcats opened with a 7-3 lead, using two kills from Chase Doughty to complete a 4-0 run. Idaho pushed back out of the stoppage, tying the set at 10. Mau broke a 15-15 tie to put the Vandals up midway through the set. Montana State was able to tie the set twice late. Peterson broke the 19-19 deadlock as Idaho streaked to a 25-19 finish, recording the final six points of the frame.
The Silver and Gold kept rolling in the second set. A kill from Bierma capped off a 4-0 run to open the set, giving the Vandals a combined run of 10 straight points. Sarah Sharp pushed the Idaho advantage to 7-2, before a 4-0 MSU run cut the Idaho lead to one. Idaho kept calm and collected, opening the lead back up to four at 15-11. Peterson collected a kill and an ace in a 3-0 run to give Idaho a 19-13 lead. Peterson and Mau would record one kill each in the final stretch, giving Idaho the 25-18 win.
The Vandals combined for a .448 attack percentage, committing just three errors in the final set. Montana State on the other hand struggled on the attack, committing six errors and hitting just .065. Meredith Coba served up an early ace and the Vandals stole any hope away from the Bobcats with an 8-1 lead. Idaho used a 6-1 run to gain a 10-point advantage at 14-4. Jenna Ellis closed a 4-0 run with her third ace of the night to give Idaho match-point, 24-10. Montana State briefly avoided defeat, until a Peterson kill finished them off, 25-12.
“Throughout the match I thought we had some good leads,” head coach Debbie Buchanan explained. “I was especially proud of the team in that third set. We really talked about needing to have more urgency. It was pretty important for us to put together that big push at the end.”
Idaho out-blocked the Bobcats on the night, 7-4. The team recorded nine more digs than Montana State, 39-30. Offensively, Idaho matched a season-high with seven aces and out-killed MSU, 44-31.
The Vandals take on Montana on Saturday at 7 p.m. PT. A win over the Grizzlies combined with a Portland State loss, locks up a berth in the Big Sky Tournament for the Vandals. Montana defeated Eastern Washington on Thursday, 3-1.
“For us every match is going to be important,” Buchanan said. “We have to take it one match at a time. We are not having the team think too far ahead.
“We have set some goal for these last six matches. We are home for three more after tonight. I think we have the potential to do some great things.”
For more information on Idaho Athletics, visit GoVandals.com. Fans can also follow Idaho volleyball on Twitter, @IdahoVolleyball.
