PREVIEW | Southern Utah Prepares to Host Montana and Montana State 

CEDAR CITY, Utah -- The Thunderbirds are set to welcome the Grizzlies of the University of Montana on Thursday, October 10, at 6:30 p.m. and the Bobcats of Montana State University on Saturday, October 12 at 1:00 p.m. 

"Both teams have great coaches and great potential," said head coach Pete Hoyer. "After the close loss on Saturday, we are ready to come out of the gates fighting until the very end of each match. It is crucial that we stay healthy and play with a level of maturity beyond our young team's years." 

Last Time Out

After a week on the road, the Thunderbirds returned from Sacramento State with a five set win over the Hornets and a five set loss to Portland State. 

SUU is now 9-7 overall and 2-2 in Big Sky Conference play. Within conference standings the T-Birds sit in sixth and hold a third place spot in both team hitting percentage, posting a .229 and assists, averaging 11.53 per set. 

Shannon Webb led the Thunderbirds offense over the 1-1 split as she posted 34 total kills. Stacey Hone followed closely behind as she tallied 33 kills. 

Corrin Peterson led the T-Birds in assists with 94. Peterson set a new school record for service aces in a single match as she totaled six of them during the Sacramento State match. The previous record was five, held by Brittany Clark from a 2010 South Dakota State match.  

Thea Leiataua headed SUU's defense with totaled 44 digs, 33 of them came from the Portland State match. This broke the SUU five set dig record, previously set at 32 by Miahna Waters in 2018 at Montana State.  

Katie Montgomery also set a new school record, this time in single match blocks as she posted 12 against Sacramento State. Montgomery topped Cashaana Renfro's 2011 record of 10 in 2011 against Oral Roberts. Over the whole week Montgomery totaled 18 blocks. 

Opponent Preview: University of Montana Grizzlies (2-13 Overall, 1-3 BSC)

The Grizzlies split during last week's outing as the defeated Eastern Washington 3-0 and lost to Idaho 3-1. 

Amethyst Harper leads Montana's offense with 122 kills on the season, averaging 2.60 per set. Ashley Watkins, the setter for the Grizzlies, totals 208 assists on the season, averaging 8.32 per set. Missy Huddleston leads the team in digs with 126, averaging 2.57 per set. Elsa Godwin leads the conference in service aces with 16. 

Allison Lawrence is amidst her third season as the head coach of the University of Montana volleyball program. 

The Thunderbirds will face the Grizzlies inside the American First Event Center at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, October 10. 

Opponent Preview: Montana State University Bobcats (7-6 Overall, 3-1 BSC) 

The Bobcats finished last weeks play with two wins as the topped Idaho 3-1 and Eastern Washington 3-0. MSU sits in second place within BSC standings. 

Evi Wilson leads the Bobcats in kills with 158 on the season, averaging 3.22 per set. Allie Lynch tallies 483 assists, averaging 9.86 per set. Lynch also leads the Bobcats in service aces with 11 on the season. Allyssa Rizzo totals the most digs for the Bobcats defense with 281, averaging 5.73 digs per set. Emma Pence leads MSU in blocks as she posts 48 total blocks. 

Daniel Jones is among his third year as the head coach of Montana State. 

The Thunderbirds will face the Bobcats inside the American First Event Center at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday, October 12. 

Fan Notes

Thursday's match will be "90's night". Fans are encouraged to wear 90's themed apparel and participate in fanny pack giveaway. 

Saturday's match will have free t-shirts for a select number of attendees. 

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