MISSOULA, Mont. – The North Dakota State volleyball team dropped a 3-0 decision at Montana on Saturday morning at the Ellesyn Invitational.
Lauren Jansen led the way reaching double figures in kills for fifth time this season with 12 to go along with a team-best 14 digs. It marked her first double-double of the season and fifth of her career Cathy Porter handed out a team-best 14 assists and Rya Borer added 10 digs on the defensive side.
Both teams worked through the opening frame that saw nine ties and four lead changes until the Bison (4-1) assembled six straight points to steal the lead, 22-20. The Grizzlies (2-3) answered to close the set on a 5-1 run of their own to win the stanza, 25-23, after back-to-back kills from Delaney Russell.
Montana carried the energy into the second frame doubling up NDSU, 10-5. The Grizzlies, who posted a .323 hitting percentage in the set, took advantage of attack errors to grow their lead to 19-10. Montana closed out the frame, 25-18.
The two teams traded points in the third set until Montana assembled a 7-0 run to build a 23-14 edge following a service ace. The Bison responded with five straight points of their own to cut the deficit to 23-19 with a block from Baily Randall and Ally Barth. After a Montana kill, NDSU put together another 4-0 run to make the score 24-23 with a kill from Emma Tallman. However, Olivia LaBeau connected on a kill to seal the set, 25-23, and the match, 3-0.
NDSU will be back in action hosting Idaho on Thursday. First serve is set for 7:00 p.m., at Bentson Bunker Fieldhouse.
https://gobison.com/news/2025/9/6/womens-volleyball-ndsu-volleyball-stumbles-at-montana.aspx