(Editor's note: MSUB Athletics release)
ELLENSBURG, Wash. – The Central Washington University Wildcats overwhelmed the Montana State University Billings Yellowjackets 3-0 (25-22, 25-18, 25-18) Thursday night.
MSUB struggled to find consistent offense on the night, ending with a team hitting percentage of .096 to CWU’s .226. CWU finished with 39 kills and 13 errors, while MSUB put away 35 kills and 23 errors. The Wildcats finished with two players with double-digit kills, Makala Swart who held .324 hitting percentage with 12 kills and Lexi Schamadan hit .261 with 10 kills. Kyla Morgan finished with 21 digs defensively for CWU.
The ‘Jackets were led Bayli Monck who notched her seventh double-double of the season with 11 kills, 13 digs and a hitting percentage of .111. Skylar Reed had 11 kills while hitting a team leading .207. Hannah Hashbarger finished with a double-double of 28 assists and 10 digs. Freshmen libero/defensive specialist Marissa Logozzo had a team high 19 digs.
The Yellowjackets could not get in rhythm as CWU never trailed in the wire-to-wire victory. The Wildcats played the best in the second set hitting a game high .270 with 13 kills. CWU had 13 kills in all three sets while MSUB’s best came in the second set as well when they hit .119 with eight kills.
The second set saw MSUB attempt to mount a comeback from a 16-8 deficit and rallied all the way back within four, 22-18. A service fault by the Yellowjackets stalled the attempt and CWU finished off the set 25-18.
“We had a tough night,” said head coach Casey Williams. “We never got going offensively and CWU was too much for our block and defense to handle. W need to regroup and get ready for NNU.”
Central Washington improves to 9-7, 4-4 GNAC, while MSUB drops their fifth match in a row and falls to 4-12, 2-5 GNAC.
UP NEXT: The Yellowjackets face off against the Northwest Nazarene Nighthawks on Saturday, October 12 in Nampa, Ida. The match is schedule to being at 7 P.M. MST. NNU is coming off a 3-2 (25-22, 26-24, 9-25, 27-29, 15-11) victory over CWU this past Tuesday, Oct. 8. NNU holds a record of 7-7, 3-4 GNAC.
THE BUZZ: Bayli Monck was named St. Vincent Healthcare player of the match for the Yellowjackets. She led the team with 13 kills while posting 19 digs and hitting .111…Monck has been a consistent player on both the offensive and defensive sides of the ball, leading the team with seven double-doubles.
