Box Score BOZEMAN, Mont. – The North Dakota volleyball team was back in action Friday night as they took on Montana State. After UND took a tense first set 26-24, the Bobcats took each of the next three sets (26-24, 18-25, 18-25, 14-25). Elizabeth Norris reached 20 assists for the first time since November 10 of last season vs. Denver, and Paige Barber led the team with 11 kills; her first effort with double-digit kills since November 1, 2022 vs. South Dakota.
Montana State grabbed a 5-1 lead out of the gate in set one, but an 11-4 run from the Hawks gave them a 13-9 lead. Barber started the run with a kill and assisted on a block with Trinity Blackwood to cap off the run. UND would lead by as many as seven in the set but MSU would fight back to tie the set at 24. UND won the set with kills from Kaycee O'Dell and Barber.
The second set began in a similar way to the first as MSU got an early lead, but UND fought back to tie the set at eight and then take their first lead at 10-9 following a kill from O'Dell. Later the set was tied at 12 but MSU would pull away at that point and UND did not catch them the rest of the set.
In set number three, MSU once again got out to a lead at 6-1 but UND would answer with five of the next six points. Norris picked up two kills in the stretch and Ashlyn Olson picked up one. Teagan Timperley and Maddy Hornyak both picked up aces. But the Hawks could not draw any closer the rest of the way as the Bobcats went up 2-1 in the match.
Once more the Hawks found themselves down quickly in the fourth set, and were unable to rally back. The best stretch of the set was winning five of six points late in the set with Barber getting two kills, with Blackwood and Norris picking up one each and Izzie McCormick picked up an ace.
How it happened:
Set one: UND 26, MSU 24
Set two: MSU 25, UND 18
Set three: MSU 25, UND 18
Set four: MSU 25, UND 14
Postgame notes:
· Lipetzky had her highest kill count since racking up 11 at Kansas City last October.
· McCormick led the team with nine digs
· Teagan Timperley had 12 assists, reaching double digit assists in each of her first two matches
· Blackwood had four kills in her first career match
· Hornyak and Norris each had two aces
