(Editor's note: MSUB Athletics release)
PORTLAND, Ore. – Career-best performances from Skylar Reed and Maddi Vigil led the Montana State University Billings volleyball team to three victories last week, and the duo was rewarded by sweeping the Great Northwest Athletic Conference Player of the Week awards.
Reed was named the GNAC Offensive Player of the Week, and Vigil took home the GNAC Defensive Player of the Week award. “Both Skylar and Madeline are very deserving of this award,” said MSUB head coach Casey Williams. “They were a big part of our team’s success last week. I’m really proud of both of these girls.”
Reed averaged 3.93 kills per set and totaled 55 in the team’s three matches. Reed started the week off with a career-high 24 kills to give the Yellowjackets a victory over the 12-1 Rocky Mountain College volleyball team. On Sunday, Reed followed with 31 more kills, helping MSUB defeat both University of Mary and Black Hills State on the road. Reed led the team with a .287 attack percentage, and also averaged 2.50 digs per set with a total of 35 on the weekend. She completed her first two collegiate double-doubles, while adding five service aces, three assists, and a pair of blocks for a team-high 61.5 points.
Vigil averaged 4.15 digs per set with a total of 54 in the team’s three matches. Vigil had a career-high 30 digs to help MSUB knock off Rocky, before adding 24 more digs on Sunday. The senior has racked up 1,055 digs in her four-year career, ranking her No. 8 in program history.
In MSUB’s four-game spring season, Reed is the team’s leading attacker at 3.56 kills per set and a hitting percentage of .273. Vigil meanwhile leads the team in total digs with 70, and ranks second on the squad with an average of 4.12 digs per set.
This is the first-career GNAC Player of the Week honor for both players, and the first of the year for the Yellowjacket volleyball team. It is the first time in program history that MSUB has swept the weekly honors in volleyball.
MSUB (3-1) finishes its road trip on Monday night, with a 6 p.m. first serve at South Dakota School of Mines. Live video will be available online here [portal.stretchinternet.com] and live statistics will be available online here [gorockers.com].