DILLON — Montana Western's run at the 2024 national volleyball tournament final site in Kansas City went down as the best in program history.
In the final match of pool play, the Bulldogs — who entered as a No. 16 seed — toppled previously unbeaten and top-seeded Northwestern College (Iowa) 3-1 to lift Western into the national quarterfinals for the first time ever. It was a defining win for a team that had spent years searching for a breakthrough.
"It was amazing," said head coach Katie Lovett, now heading into her seventh season guiding the Bulldogs. "I feel like each year they took strides to get better and better. And then for us to capitalize on that type of win against a phenomenal team, we all knew that we had the capability to win."
No. 11 Western will now head into its 2025 campaign looking to build off last season's unprecedented success. The Bulldogs (1-3) graduated a sizable senior class that included Jazi Smith, Peyton Vogl and Danyel Martin.
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But Western does return senior Jordan Olson, a Billings Skyview product who was Western's kills leader behind Smith last season. Olson joined Western in 2022 and has been a part of a program transformation that saw the Bulldogs earn just two conference wins her freshman season.
"It's really exciting seeing how the team's evolving over the years and just being part of it," said Olson.
Western will head into an expanded Frontier Conference with a revamped roster. But what the Bulldogs accomplished last December in Kansas City set a new precedent for what this team wants to accomplish.
"I think it just really elevated what we wanted to do here," said Lovett. "When I got here I wanted to build a strong foundation with our culture. And I think that's what took us into our success last year."
And for Olson and Western's other seniors — Kara Pospisil, Megan Hardman and Taylor Petersen — they'll look to make their final chapter with the Bulldogs a memorable one.
"Just wanting to leave with no regrets and leaving a legacy that I know is positive and loving," Olson said of what she wants to achieve in her last season. "It's important to give this school your all because it gave it to me and I just want to return the favor."
Western will play one final preseason tournament in Lewiston, Idaho, before opening Frontier play at Valley City State and Mayville State.
