KINGSVILLE, Texas – The Montana State University Billings volleyball team wrapped up its Texas road trip on Saturday on day two of the Javelina Volleyball Classic, falling in five sets to hosts Texas A&M Kingsville to open the day before falling in straight sets to Minnesota State University Moorhead in the tournament finale.
The Yellowjackets (2-6) took the Javelinas (6-3) to the brink on their home court but fell just short in a 23-25, 25-19, 25-20, 22-25, 15-9 contest, before dropping a three-set match to the Dragons (7-2) by scores of 25-20, 25-15, 25-16.
Texas A&M Kingsville outhit the Yellowjackets .195 to .124 in their contest, with MSUB collecting 42 kills, eight aces, six blocks, 41 assists and 70 digs. Allie Dorman finished with a team-leading 15 kills, adding 11 digs, a pair of aces and a block assist. Meanwhile, Izzy Ping totaled career bests with 12 kills on a .367 hitting percentage. Emma Fairbairn finished with eight kills and nine digs. Avery Starr dished out 37 assists, collecting 11 digs, three assists and two block assists. Mikayla Champlin and Laina Whitney each collected two kills, with the freshman Champlin adding three aces, four digs and a block assist, while Whitney had two solo blocks and three assists. Avarey Stuff finished with a team-high 13 digs.
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The Javelinas took an early 4-0 lead in the opening set, but after stopping the run and trading points, the Yellowjackets rallied from down 11-6 for four straight points to pull within two. The teams then traded runs before a four-point surge from MSUB pulled them even at 15, with the Yellowjackets taking three of the next four points to move in front. They never relinquished that lead, making plays and trading points with the Javelinas to take set one.
Set two fell the way of the Javelinas, despite MSUB starting with an early 4-1 run. Texas A&M Kingsville battled back to even the score before a mid-set 14-4 run gave them a comfortable lead on the way to a set two victory. The Yellowjackets battled to keep set three closer throughout, but Kingsville held on to take the set victory, buoyed by another big run in the middle of the set to build its cushion.
MSUB responded strong with a 9-3 run to open the fourth set and saw off a rally attempt in the middle of the frame from the Javelinas to set up a winner-take-all set five. The Yellowjackets struck first, taking an early lead, but after leading 4-3, Kingsville scored seven straight points to take a lead it did not relinquish, holding the advantage to secure the match victory despite a strong fight from MSUB.
In game two, the Dragons took control early and used that momentum to set up a strong performance, outhitting MSUB .272 to .082, with 42 total kills compared to 27 from the Yellowjackets. Ping again led the team in attacking percentage, along with a team-high eight kills. Emma Fairbairn totaled seven kills and a pair of digs, while Allie Dorman finished with six kills and nine digs. Laina Whitney and Mikayla Champlin each totaled three kills.
UP NEXT: The Yellowjackets head to the Last Frontier to open GNAC play next week, kicking off their road trip with a matchup against University of Alaska Fairbanks at Alaska Airlines Court on Thursday, September 10. First serve is scheduled for 1 p.m. MT (11 a.m. AKT), with live video available on the GNAC Network and live statistics available here.
