The University of Idaho volleyball team spent this week on the road through Montana, playing Montana State University on Thursday, Oct. 1, and the University of Montana on Saturday, Oct. 3, for their third and fourth conference games of the year.
The Vandals took a hard loss against Montana State in three sets, moving into the game against the University of Montana with a 9-6 record, going 0-3 in conference.
The Vandal volleyball team started this season on a high, with a five-game winning streak and tournament play scores reaching 9-3 by the start of conference play. Still, in their game against the Idaho State University Bengals, the Vandals appear to have lost their footing and have started on a losing streak in the last four games.
The University of Montana Grizz went into the game 4-10 overall and tied with the Vandals 0-3 in conference after losses to Montana State, Northern Colorado and Eastern Washington University in the weeks prior.
Hosting the University of Idaho tallies their third home game of the season and their first home game win for their homecoming weekend.
Despite their recent losses, the Grizz were favored to beat the Vandals and close out 10 years of straight wins against the University of Idaho volleyball team.
Out of the gate, Montana stepped hard onto their home turf, ready for the game against the Vandals. They took an early lead and banked on their front row to attack with aggression, which was delivered easily as the Grizz scored five of the first 10 points of the set in kills.
Then, Montana hit a six-point run, setting the score at 14-6, as they hit over double the Vandals’ score. Idaho couldn’t get behind the ball to attack, slowing their game and keeping them on the ground throughout the first set as they took hard hits off of Montana’s front row.
In an attempt to come back, the Vandals jumped the score from 17-8 to 20-14, but it wasn’t enough, and Montana took home the first set at 25-17.
The second set saw the Vandals’ resilience show through as they made a comeback with both a four-point and five-point run, doubling Montana’s score at 12-6, until a five-point run by Montana slowed them down, the score eventually tying up at 14-14.
In a few back-and-forth points, with a five-point run for the Grizz, Montana retook the lead and ended the set at 25-20.
Despite moving 2-0 into the third set, the Vandals picked up the energy in set two, moving their previous kill score in the first set from 12 to 14 in the second.
The third and final set started similarly to the second, with the Vandals coming out strong, high energy and renewed after the short break and team meeting.
They kicked the score up to 10-1 with multiple kills by the Vandals and attack errors by the Grizz. Idaho tallied a total of 16 kills in the third set, finally getting behind the ball and demonstrating their resilience on the court once more.
Unfortunately, the Vandals slipped, energy dropped, and Montana then hit a seven-point run, closing the gap to a mere three points.
Idaho continued to play hard throughout the rest of the set, retaining the lead until a 24-24 tie and pushing the set late.
The Grizz ultimately took it home 28-26 on two attack errors by the Vandals’ Kiana Greer for their 10th win over the Vandals over the last decade.
Though the Vandals have recently hit a losing streak, a few notable players still stand out amongst the roster, one of those being the sophomore player Kiana Greer.
The 5-foot-8 hitter tallied 12 kills throughout the game, with senior Sophie Sullivan behind her at seven.
Defensively, junior libero Kyriah Trenfren put up six digs, while freshman setter Csenge Krakozcki matched her six and aided with 31 assists in the three-set game.
Coming out of the games against both Montana teams, the Vandals’ overall record has hit 9-7, as they are currently 0-4 in conference.
The Vandals will spend the coming week on the road, playing Eastern Washington on Oct. 6 in Cheney and Northern Colorado on Oct. 10 in Greeley.