SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Montana State kept its first-ever postseason run alive Friday night with a four-set victory over homestanding Sacramento State in the second round of the National Invitational Volleyball Championship.
Kira Thomsen had 15 kills and Camryn Greenwald added 10 more as the Bobcats topped the Hornets 25-27, 25-17, 25-19, 25-19 at The Nest on the Sac State campus.
With the win, MSU improved its overall record to 23-8 — a school-record for wins — and advanced to face Wyoming in the third round of the NIVC next week. Sacramento State finished with a 22-12 record. Wyoming defeated Northern Colorado in their second-round match on Friday.
“It’s pretty cool,” first-year MSU coach Matt Houk stated in a press release. “We just want to keep this stuff rolling.”
Nellie Stevenson had 34 assists for a Montana State attack that hit .250 collectively with 48 kills.
Defensively, the Bobcats had 16 total blocks led by Jordan Radick and Joudain Kamps. Kamps also had a team-high 12 digs. Lauren Lindseth finished with 11 digs.
“Sacramento State is a tough team to block,” Houk said. “If they pass well their kids are flying all over the place. I thought we executed our block plan at a high rate, and it gave them fits. Their middles are a handful, but the load of swings goes through (Bridgette) Smith, so it was important to slow her down.”
Smith had 15 kills to lead Sacramento State while teammates Kalani Hayes and Ellie Tisko each had 10.
The Bobcats are in the midst of the program's first postseason appearance. MSU will be among the final eight teams standing in the NIVC. Montana State and Wyoming will meet Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. in Laramie, Wyo., for a berth in the semifinals.
