Senior outside hitter Kobi Christensen jump serves to the opposing Montana State Bobcats on Thursday September 15. (Photo by Sarah Hamilton)
It may have taken 20 years, but NAU’s volleyball team matched a school record with 11 consecutive victories to start a season with their 3–1 win over the University of Montana Grizzlies.
The Lumberjacks began Big Sky Conference play with matches against Montana State (Sept. 15) and the University of Montana (Sept. 17) in the Rolle Activity Center.
“One of the goals up on our mission statement is [to] sweep [a] conference weekend, which we haven’t done since I’ve been here,” said NAU volleyball coach Craig Choate. “We did it on the first weekend, so check it off.”
The last time the Lumberjacks defeated Montana was 2007, and before Saturday, NAU was 2–8 in their last 10 matches against the Grizzlies. During practice the day before the match, senior outside hitter Kobi Christensen — who has led the team and the Big Sky in kills (139) — injured herself and was not able to participate in the match.
It is currently unknown when Christensen will return, but Choate said she would be out for the match against Sacramento State.
“It’s not an uncommon thing when somebody goes down that everybody refocuses,” Choate said. “Everybody out there is capable of a big game.”
The Lumberjacks took control of the first set with a 25–10 victory, which included 14 kills and a 56.6 hitting percentage. Junior outside hitter Lexi Sullivan led the Jacks with five kills in the first set, followed by freshman middle blocker Sydney Kemper’s four. One of the major disparities in the first set were the nine errors the Grizzlies committed, compared to NAU’s one.
“It just feels so good,” Sullivan said. “Just knowing your team has your back and that we can just come together and play so good and learn together, it’s nice.”
Montana found their footing in the second stanza, winning 25–23. The second set was a close battle, with 16 ties and seven lead changes, as both teams fought for every point. Junior setter Kelli Dallmann got the Jacks on the board to begin the set with an assist from junior libero Anna Gott, who led the team with 17 digs. The set was capped off by two kills from the Grizzlies.
NAU returned to form in the third set with junior outside hitter Jen Wilson leading the team with four points. Freshman setter Kalee Kirby scored her first serving ace of the season and started a 3–1 scoring run for the Lumberjacks. Montana mounted a comeback with a 14–8 run, but would only score five more points through the set. NAU would close out the third stanza with nine points, including four consecutive kills to seal the deal at 25–19.
“[Our] motto, if you wanna say, is nobody’s gonna outwork us,” Kemper said. “We’re gonna work harder than everybody.”
Junior outside hitter Lauren Campbell gets pumped after a kill against Montana. (Photo by Sarah Hamilton)
The final set of the match was back and forth. The Lady Jacks maintained a slight lead for the duration of the set until Montana tied the score 23–23. The Grizzlies took the lead for the first time in the set after an error by Kemper, but Wilson evened it up with a kill off of a Montana serve. NAU gained the upper hand from a Montana error, and Kemper scored the final point, keeping the ladies undefeated.
Sullivan led the Jacks with 16 kills and a 33.3 percent hitting average. Kemper followed with 13 kills and a hitting average of 32 percent.
“I was pretty pumped up actually,” Kemper said. “I was just ready to play. I was excited for the match.”
The Lumberjacks started the week off with a 3–0 win over Montana State. Kemper scored eight kills through the match, followed by Christensen’s seven. Dallmann added 25 more assists to her record, and Gott tallied 10 digs for the Jacks.
“We’re not a bunch of individuals anymore,” Sullivan said. “I think that’s how we used to play and we’ve all matured into better athletes and we’ve gotten stronger and now we cover each others’ weaknesses; it’s a good blend as a team.”
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