Photo by Byron Harward
After a hard fought loss to the No. 9-ranked Kansas Jayhawks Thursday, the UVU volleyball team returned to action to take on the Montana Grizzlies of the Big Sky Conference in its second of three matches in the Wolverine Invitational. UVU (2-4) proved to be too much for Montana (3-2) as the Grizzlies fell to the Wolverines in 3 sets (25-15, 26-24, 25-16).
The first set was back-and-forth early on with the teams playing their way to a 9-9 tie before a Lexi Thompson kill broke the set wide open, sparking a 10-1 scoring run for the Wolverines. With the score sitting at 19-11 in favor of UVU, Montana mounted a minor comeback. It proved to be too little too late, however, as the Wolverines won the first set handily.
The second set began much like the first with the Wolverines breaking off a 6-1 run following a 10-10 tie. The Grizzlies would not go quietly, though, as they fought back with several runs of their own to tie the score at 24 all before a clutch Madison Dennison kill put the set away for good.
With momentum on their side and a sweep within reach, the Wolverines came out hot in the third set, jumping out to a 14-7 lead. After several Montana scores cut the Wolverine lead to five at 16-11, Megan Boudreaux recorded a kill to get UVU back on track. The Wolverines ended on a 9-3 run to win the set and complete the sweep.
Dennison led the way for the Wolverines as she notched 12 kills, and Sierra Starley added 32 assists to pace the team.
Both teams will return to the court Saturday for their final matches of the Wolverine Invitational. Montana will take on No. 9 Kansas before UVU faces off against Long Beach State in the concluding match of the tournament.
After the Wolverine Invitational the Wolverines will head to Pocatello, Idaho, to take on Idaho State on Monday, Sept. 4 at 6 p.m.
