Weber State University Athletics
Friday, November 19
Ogden
7:00 PM
Weber State University
20-8,14-3Big Sky
3
vs
2
#4 Montana State
15-14,10-6Big Sky
1
2
3
4
5
F
Montana St.
20
27
14
25
12
2
Weber St.
25
25
25
22
15
3
Photo by: Abby Grundy
Wildcats Win a Classic Semi-Final, Advance to Big Sky Conference Championship
11/19/2021 11:01:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
The Weber State and Montana State Volleyball played what arguably was the best Big Sky Conference Volleyball match of the season. In a five-set white knuckle kind of match, the Wildcats defended their homecourt and won 3-2 (25-20, 25-27, 25-14, 22-25, 15-12).
In front of an estimated crowd of over 1,000 people, mostly clad in their Wildcat purple and white, the Bobcats and the Wildcats were see-sawing back and forth for the early portions of the first set. It was 9-8 in favor of MSU when the Wildcats went on an extended 10-4 run to establish control. Behind seven kills from Rylin Adams (more on her later), Weber State went on to win the first set 25-20.
The second set, in what proved to be a theme for the match, was absolutely wild. There were 18 ties and four lead changes in the match, including ties at 24-24 and 25-25, but Montana State scored consecutive points after that final tie to take the set 27-25.
Weber State came out and dominated in the following set, however, and the third set drama was done relatively early. It was all tied at 9-9, then Weber State went on an 12-4 tear to create the separation it needed. The Wildcats cruised to a 25-14 set victory and a 2-1 lead in the match.
Admirable performances from Kira Thomsen and Hannah Scott helped fuel the Bobcats in what was a do-or-die set for Montana State. MSU was up 15-9 at the media timeout and looked like it was primed to pull away, but Weber State still had some fight left in it. The Wildcats got as close as 23-22, but Montana State closed things out by scoring the final two points of the set.
Fifth sets don't happen at Swenson Gym very often, and the fact that the match on Friday happened to be a conference tournament semi-final turned the intensity up a notch higher.
When asked what he told his group going into the fifth set, Jeremiah Larsen said, "This game is awesome. I don't care if we win or lose, I'm happy with the effort that we put forth, we'll put our hearts on the floor and see what happens."
The make or break fifth set was back and forth nearly the whole way through. In a set that goes to 15 and you must win by two, there were 10 ties and three lead changes.
The crowd was on its feet the entire set in support of their Wildcats, and it took a come from behind effort, but they got the job done in what very well could have been the best volleyball match ever played at Swenson Gym. After trailing 11-10, head coach Jeremiah Larsen called time out to get his group to recover. Coming out of the timeout, Adams came flying out of the back row and swung hard as she has done her entire career. The result was her 25th kill, which ties the All-American's career high, and tied the set at 11. Weber State scored four of the next five points, punctuated by a block by Sam Schiess that sent the Swenson into a complete chaos.
Wildcats win.
When asked for his thoughts on the classic semi-final, Larsen said, "Just two teams playing their guts out. That's what so awesome about this sport this time of the year. Montana State played a heck of a game and probably deserved to win that game as much as we did, but luckily we came away with a couple more points than they did."
With the victory, Weber State joins the 20-win club on the season, but more importantly, advances to face their old rivals, Northern Colorado in Saturday's championship match.
This will be the third time in as many years that the Wildcats and Bears will square off with the Big Sky Conference hardware on the line. The two squads met in 2019 in Sacramento, a match that the Bears won in five sets. In the 2020-21 spring season championship that was held in Greeley, Colorado, the Wildcats won beat the Bears on their home floor in four sets.
Saturday will be the rubber match.
"Déjà vu all over again," Larsen mentioned of the rematch. "They're good and it's going to be a tough match."
On Saturday, Wildcat fans will be treated to the biggest volleyball match that the city of Ogden has ever seen, and the 'Cats will take all the energy that they can get. "It's huge," Larsen said of the massive crowd and the phenomenal energy they brought on Friday. He continued, "The energy feeds us when we're tired, exhausted or feeling down […] they got to see a good show tonight.
Tomorrow's match will be played in Swenson Gym at 7:00. Tickets to the championship match can be purchased online or by calling Weber State's ticket office at 801-626-8500. The match can also be viewed on ESPN+.
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In front of an estimated crowd of over 1,000 people, mostly clad in their Wildcat purple and white, the Bobcats and the Wildcats were see-sawing back and forth for the early portions of the first set. It was 9-8 in favor of MSU when the Wildcats went on an extended 10-4 run to establish control. Behind seven kills from Rylin Adams (more on her later), Weber State went on to win the first set 25-20.
The second set, in what proved to be a theme for the match, was absolutely wild. There were 18 ties and four lead changes in the match, including ties at 24-24 and 25-25, but Montana State scored consecutive points after that final tie to take the set 27-25.
Weber State came out and dominated in the following set, however, and the third set drama was done relatively early. It was all tied at 9-9, then Weber State went on an 12-4 tear to create the separation it needed. The Wildcats cruised to a 25-14 set victory and a 2-1 lead in the match.
Admirable performances from Kira Thomsen and Hannah Scott helped fuel the Bobcats in what was a do-or-die set for Montana State. MSU was up 15-9 at the media timeout and looked like it was primed to pull away, but Weber State still had some fight left in it. The Wildcats got as close as 23-22, but Montana State closed things out by scoring the final two points of the set.
Fifth sets don't happen at Swenson Gym very often, and the fact that the match on Friday happened to be a conference tournament semi-final turned the intensity up a notch higher.
When asked what he told his group going into the fifth set, Jeremiah Larsen said, "This game is awesome. I don't care if we win or lose, I'm happy with the effort that we put forth, we'll put our hearts on the floor and see what happens."
The make or break fifth set was back and forth nearly the whole way through. In a set that goes to 15 and you must win by two, there were 10 ties and three lead changes.
The crowd was on its feet the entire set in support of their Wildcats, and it took a come from behind effort, but they got the job done in what very well could have been the best volleyball match ever played at Swenson Gym. After trailing 11-10, head coach Jeremiah Larsen called time out to get his group to recover. Coming out of the timeout, Adams came flying out of the back row and swung hard as she has done her entire career. The result was her 25th kill, which ties the All-American's career high, and tied the set at 11. Weber State scored four of the next five points, punctuated by a block by Sam Schiess that sent the Swenson into a complete chaos.
Wildcats win.
When asked for his thoughts on the classic semi-final, Larsen said, "Just two teams playing their guts out. That's what so awesome about this sport this time of the year. Montana State played a heck of a game and probably deserved to win that game as much as we did, but luckily we came away with a couple more points than they did."
With the victory, Weber State joins the 20-win club on the season, but more importantly, advances to face their old rivals, Northern Colorado in Saturday's championship match.
This will be the third time in as many years that the Wildcats and Bears will square off with the Big Sky Conference hardware on the line. The two squads met in 2019 in Sacramento, a match that the Bears won in five sets. In the 2020-21 spring season championship that was held in Greeley, Colorado, the Wildcats won beat the Bears on their home floor in four sets.
Saturday will be the rubber match.
"Déjà vu all over again," Larsen mentioned of the rematch. "They're good and it's going to be a tough match."
On Saturday, Wildcat fans will be treated to the biggest volleyball match that the city of Ogden has ever seen, and the 'Cats will take all the energy that they can get. "It's huge," Larsen said of the massive crowd and the phenomenal energy they brought on Friday. He continued, "The energy feeds us when we're tired, exhausted or feeling down […] they got to see a good show tonight.
Tomorrow's match will be played in Swenson Gym at 7:00. Tickets to the championship match can be purchased online or by calling Weber State's ticket office at 801-626-8500. The match can also be viewed on ESPN+.
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Team Stats
MSU
Weber
Kills
65
66
Errors
25
14
Attempts
191
186
Hitting %
.209
.280
Points
73
88
Assists
63
62
Aces
2
6
Blocks
6
16
Game Leaders
Kills-Aces-Blocks
Kills
25
Aces
1
Blocks
2
Kills
13
Aces
3
Blocks
3
Kills
12
Aces
0
Blocks
7
Kills
8
Aces
0
Blocks
8
Players Mentioned
OH/L
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