Sat., Nov. 10 - vs. Northwest Nazarene, 7 p.m., Alterowitz Gym (Senior Night)
   Click HERE for live video stream
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Note: The Yellowjackets will be running a youth clinic at Alterowitz Gym on Nov. 10.  Click HERE for the informational flyer, or call Coach Schaub at 657-2603.

Click HERE for this week's Yellowjacket Volleyball Show
 

The Yellowjackets bounced back from a pair of road losses to win two games at home last weekend.  They dispatched cross-town rival Rocky Mountain 3-1 on Thursday and picked up a GNAC win against Seattle, 3-1, on Saturday.

Devon Crotteau’s career-high 27 kills led MSU Billings to a 3-1 non-conference win over Rocky Mountain College on Thursday.  The Yellowjackets defeated their cross-town rivals for the 10th-straight time, 30-26, 21-30, 30-27, 30-19.

The teams traded the first two games of the match in similar fashion.  The Yellowjackets led wire-to-wire in the opening game, out-hitting the Bears .170 to .100.  Crotteau had eight kills in the game.  The Bears responded with a resounding 10-point win in the second game, hitting a solid .243.

Rocky maintained control of the match after the intermission and built a 22-19 lead in the third game.  But the Jackets battled back behind the service of Hillary Morrison.  The sophomore was instrumental in the Jackets’ 3-1 win at Rocky back in early October when she served up 10-straight points in the deciding fourth game.  On Thursday, Morrison served seven straight MSUB points starting when the Jackets trailed 22-21.

By the time the Bears finally broke Morrison’s serve, the Jackets led 27-23, and they cruised to a 2-1 lead in the match.  In the fourth game, MSUB broke from a 9-9 tie to win going away.  Stefania Aladjova had three of her match-high five service aces to help the Jackets close the game and the match.  MSUB out-hit RMC .261 to .075 in the game.

With the five aces, Aladjova broke the all-time single season school record for aces held by Nicole Kruse.  Aladjova has 65 aces with three matches remaining in the season.  She also picked up a career-high 17 digs and handed out 52 assists.

“One of our goals in the beginning of the match was to come out aggressive serving and passing,” said Yellowjacket head coach Sara Schaub.  “The difference between the three games we won and game two was that we did that.” 

“Devon had a great match.  She played solid in all four games; 27 kills and a .290 hitting percentage is excellent for an outside hitter.  It was great to see Stefania get on a roll with her serving again.  We’ll look for her continuing that tough serving through the next three matches.”

Jennifer Boe also had a career high for kills with 17.  She hit .227 on 44 attempts and added 16 digs.  Crotteau had 15 digs, and Kruse added 11.  Alicia Cazemier knocked down 13 kills.

Montana State Billings overcame a slow start Saturday night to defeat Seattle University 3-1 in GNAC volleyball.  The Jackets rallied from a 1-0 deficit to win convincingly, 24-30, 30-17, 30-17, 30-22.

MSU Billings improved to 17-9 overall and 9-7 in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference.  It was the Jackets’ seventh win in eight home matches this season.  Seattle fell to 10-14, 7-9.

Game one was a seesaw affair for the first 20 points with neither team leading by more than four points.  Seattle broke away from the 20-20 tie, finishing with a 10-4 run to win the game.  It turned out to be the Redhawks’ only positive hitting game of the night.

The Yellowjackets completely dominated the second game, charging to a 20-5 lead before Seattle was able to gain any ground.  By then it was too late, and MSUB hit a solid .306 for the game while holding the Redhawks to a -.114 hitting percentage.

The pattern from game two continued after the intermission with the Yellowjackets out-hitting Seattle a combined .234 to -.057 in the final two games of the match.  The last time the Redhawks led in the match was the final point of the first game.

Three Yellowjackets hit for double-digit kills, led by Alicia Cazemier’s 17.  She hit .364 on 33 attempts and was also in on four blocks.  Devon Crotteau had 15 kills and a match-high 20 digs.  Jennifer Boe added 10 kills and nine digs. 

Jessica Lechner finished with nine kills and five blocks for the Jackets.  Setter Stefania Aladjova handed out 46 assists as MSUB hit .215 for the match.  Nicole Kruse picked up 17 digs.

The Redhawks were led by nine kills apiece from Nikole Thompson and Janet Beckerman.  Beckerman had an efficient night at the net, committing only one error on 20 attempts for a .400 hitting percentage.  She and Thompson were the only Redhawks with positive attack percentages.

The Yellowjackets close out the regular season with a pair of home matches next weekend.  They host defending GNAC champion Seattle Pacific on Thursday and Northwest Nazarene on Saturday.  Both matches start at 7 p.m. and will be video streamed live on the internet at www.pennatlantic.com.  Saturday’s match will also be Senior Night for Cazemier and Kruse.  Sophomore Katrina Solomon will also be honored along with the seniors.  The nursing major will have to transfer to Montana State in Bozeman to continue her academic courses next year.

From the GNAC:
LAST WEEK: Thursday – Alaska Anchorage 0 at Saint Martin's 3 (30-22, 30-28, 30-23); Alaska Fairbanks 1 at Western Oregon 3 (26-30, 30-19, 30-22, 30-25); Central Washington 3 at Northwest Nazarene 1 (28-30, 31-29, 30-28, 30-18); Western Washington 3 at Seattle Pacific 1 (30-23, 29-31, 30-20, 30-28); Rocky Mountain 1 at MSU Billings 3 (30-26, 21-30, 30-27, 30-19). Saturday – Alaska Anchorage 0 at Western Oregon 3 (30-22, 30-15, 30-19); Alaska Fairbanks 0 at Saint Martin's 3 (30-22, 30-23, 30-18); Central Washington 0 at Seattle Pacific 3 (30-22, 30-24, 35-33); Western Washington 3 at Northwest Nazarene 1 (26-30,30-15, 30-21, 31-29); Seattle 1 at MSU Billings 3 (24-30, 30-17, 30-17, 30-22).

THIS WEEK: Thursday – Western Oregon at Western Washington; Saint Martin's at Central Washington; Seattle Pacific at MSU Billings; Northwest Nazarene at Seattle.  Saturday – Western Oregon at Central Washington; Saint Martin's at Western Washington; Seattle Pacific at Seattle; Northwest Nazarene at MSU Billings; Alaska Fairbanks at Alaska Anchorage. (End-of-regular season).

CSTV/AVCA National Division II (Nov. 5) -   26. Western Washington.  NCAA Division II Pacific Region (Oct. 24) - 1. Cal State San Bernardino (20-0); 2. Western Washington (14-3); 3. UC San Diego (15-6); 4. Northwest Nazarene (14-6); 5. Cal State L.A. (13-7); 6. Cal Poly Pomona (16-5); 7. Chico State (13-8); 8. Western Oregon (13-7); 9. Montana State Billings (14-7); 10. Seattle Pacific (11-9). (Note: The final regional poll will be released Wednesday).

NCAA National Statistics (Oct. 28): Individuals (Top 50): Kills - 20. Alyssa Given, SPU, 4.54; 45. Devon Crotteau, MSUB, 4.19. Hitting Percentage - 30. Tiana Roma, WWU, .362; 37. Rachael Schurman, CWU, .345; 38. Angie Alvord, WWU, .345. Aces - 10. Alyssa Given, SPU, 0.79; 24. Erin Norris, CWU, 0.70; 36. Stefania Aladjova, MSUB, 0.65; 45. Angie Alvord, WWU, 0.62. Digs - 1. Courtney Schneider, WWU, 7.53. Blocks - 12. Cammy Dranginis, NNU, 1.37; 14.. Angie Alvord, WWU, 1.36; 19. Rachael Schurman, CWU, 1.34; 25. Emily Powell, SU, 1.29. Team (Top 50): Kills - 43. Western Washington 15.19. Hitting PCT. - 21. Western Washington .256. Aces - 47. Seattle Pacific 2.38. Assists - 47. Western Washington 13.65. Digs - 7. Western Oregon 20.96, 31. Seattle 19.73. Blocks - 25. Central Washington 2.63; 42. Western Washington 2.53; 48. Seattle 2.44.

GNAC PLAYERS-OF-THE-WEEK:   Shealun Campisi, Saint Martin’s (OH, 5-11, So., Buckley, WA – White River) had 31 kills and hit for a .475 percentage (31-3-59) in sweeps of Alaska Anchorage and Alaska Fairbanks.  Campisi also had five aces and 24 digs as she led SMU to their third and fourth wins in their last nine matches after ending a 29-match losing streak.

HONORABLE MENTION:   Devon Crotteau, Montana State Billings (OH, 6-0, So., Casper, Wyo.) produced 42 kills and also had 35 digs as the Yellowjackets beat Rocky Mountain and Seattle by 3-1 scores. . .Kayla Mainer, Western Oregon (5-10, Jr., Spokane, WA – West Valley) led the Wolves with 35 kills and also had 32 digs in wins over UAF and UAA.

AROUND THE GNAC:  Jaime Anderson and Emily Castro combined for half (71 of 140) of Western Washington’s kills in 3-1 wins at SPU and NNU.  Anderson had 36 kills, 25 digs and nine blocks.  Castro contributed 35 kills and 34 digs. Courtney Schneider averaged 8.9 digs (71 in eight games) in the two matches. . .Alyssa Given had 32 kills and Rachel Biornstad had 27 kills and six blocks as Seattle Pacific split two matches.  Given currently ranks third in GNAC history with 1,411 kills.  Seattle’s Sarah Sommerman (2002-05) is the all-time leader with 1,461 and Louise Free of Northwest Nazarene (1999-02) ranks second with 1,434.  Given is the all-time leader in total attacks with 3,916. . .Nicole Ostlund was credited with 25 kills and hit at a .346 pace and Andrea Tarbet had 21 kills and participated in 13 of SMU’s 18 blocks in sweeps of Alaska Anchorage and Alaska Fairbanks. . .Stacey Bennett had a team-best .350 percentage (29-8-60) in Western Oregon’s two wins. . .Montana State Billings held its opponents to a .049 percentage in wins over Rocky Mountain and Seattle.  In addition to Crotteau’s 42 kills, MSUB got 30 kills from Alicia Cazemier and 27 from Jennifer Boe. . .Rachael Schurman had 38 kills and hit for a .391 percentage and also led Central Washington with seven blocks as the Wildcats split two matches.  Maggie Olson averaged 14.9 assists per game in the matches contests. . .Northwest Nazarene lost twice, snapping a six-match win streak, but it wasn’t because of the  effort of Cammy Dranginis, who had 36 kills and hit for a .337 percentage.  Dranginis also earned six blocks. . Megan Thigpen had team-bests of 20 kills and 25 digs and Erica Gage had 10 blocks for the Nanooks. . .Kim Stolk led Alaska Anchorage with 15 kills and Rhea Cardwell had 14 kills and 30 digs.

Click HERE for complete GNAC release

The Falcons' Alyssa Given is one of the top players in the conference, averaging 4.54 kills and 2.73 digs per game.  She has hit a solid .226 on 1,132 attempts this season.  Angie Wodrich is adding 3.11 kills per game.  Rachel Biornstad averages 2.29 kills and 0.91 blocks a game.

All-time vs. MSUB: SPU leads series 13-1
Last Meeting: MSUB def. SPU on Sept. 8, 2007 in Seattle
 

are battling for a third place finish in the GNAC.  They enter the week 16-8 overall and 10-6 in the conference, tied with Central Washington.  NNU plays at Seattle on Thursday before traveling to Billings Saturday.

Cammy Dranginis leads the Crusaders at 3.54 kills and 1.32 blocks per game.  Lindsay Forseth averages 3.02 kills and 3.60 digs a night.  Five different Crusaders have over 120 kills this season.  Despite their 16-8 record, the Crusaders have lower season totals than their opponents for kills, aces, assists, digs, and points.

All-time vs. MSUB:  NNU leads series 2-1
Last Meeting: NNU def. MSUB 3-1 on Sept. 6, 2007 in Nampa
 

A player had 30 or more kills in a match — Nov. 12, 2004 (Jessica Bratton, 33 vs. Western New Mexico)

A player had 25-29 kills in a match — Nov. 1, 2007 (Devon Crotteau, 27 vs. Rocky Mountain)

A player had 60 or more assists in a match — Sept. 2, 2006 (Natalie Bills, 66 vs. Fort Lewis)

A player had 25 or more digs in a match — Aug. 25, 2007 (Nicole Kruse (30) vs. Minn. St. Moorhead)

A player had 5 or more aces in a match — Nov. 1, 2007 (Stefania Aladjova, 5 vs. Rocky Mountain)

A player had 10 or more blocks in a match — Sept. 29, 2007 (Alicia Cazemier, 11 vs. Cent. Washington)

The team had an attack percentage over .300 — Oct. 20, 2006 (.400 vs. Oklahoma Panhandle State)

The team had 70 or more kills in a match — Oct. 11, 2007 (70 vs. Western Oregon)

The team had 70 or more assists in a match — Sept. 2, 2006 (77 vs. Fort Lewis)

The team had 100 or more digs in a match — Sept. 8, 2006 (116 vs. Central Okla.)

The team had 15 or more blocks in a match — Sept. 29, 2007 (16.0 vs. Cent. Washington)

The team had 10-14 blocks in a match - Oct. 20, 2007 (12.0 vs. Alaska Fairbanks)

Kills
Season – 1. Diane Vargo (526); 4. Devon Crotteau (432); 7. Alicia Cazemier (405)
Career – 1. Alicia Cazemier (1,415); 14. Jessica Lechner (522); 17. Devon Crotteau (432)

Assists
Season – 1. Natalie Bills (1,327); 7. Stefania Aladjova (1,127)
Career – 1. Gina Langer (4,354); 5. Stefania Aladjova (1,127)

Digs
Season – 1. Diane Vargo (440); 12. Devon Crotteau (384); 13. Nicole Kruse (374)
Career – 1. Gina Langer (1,530); 4. Nicole Kruse (1,167)

Service Aces
Season – 1. Stefania Aladjova (66); 4. Devon Crotteau (55)
Career – 1. Gina Langer (178); 3. Nicole Kruse (122); 4. Alicia Cazemier (110); 11. Stefania Aladjova (66); 17. Devon Crotteau (55)

Total Blocks
Season – 1. Deb Dianda (169); 11. Alicia Cazemier (105)
Career – 1. Alicia Cazemier (508); 12. Jessica Lechner (171)

Solo Blocks
Season – 1. Alicia Cazemier (67)
Career – 1. Alicia Cazemier (162); 20. Jessica Lechner (33)

Block Assists
Season – 1. Deb Dianda (119); 6. Alicia Cazemier (86)
Career – 1. Alicia Cazemier (346); 12. Jessica Lechner (138)

Attack Percentage
Season – 1. Andrea Donahue (.373); 8. Alicia Cazemier (.284); 21. Devon Crotteau (.214)
Career – 1. Alicia Cazemier (.306); 6. Jessica Lechner (.219); 7. Devon Crotteau (.214)

Kills per Game
Season – 1. Diane Vargo (4.61); 3. Devon Crotteau (4.28); 9. Alicia Cazemier (4.01)
Career – 1. Devon Crotteau (4.28); 7. Alicia Cazemier (3.51)

Assists per Game
Season – 1. Natalie Bills (12.52); 4. Stefania Aladjova (11.16)
Career – 1. Natalie Bills (12.16); 2. Stefania Aladjova (11.16)

Blocks per Game
Season – 1. Alicia Cazemier (1.52); 12. Alicia Cazemier (1.04)
Career – 1. Alicia Cazemier (1.26) 

Digs per Game
Season – 1. Connie Meyer (4.75); 10. Devon Crotteau (3.80); 16. Nicole Kruse (3.70)
Career – 1. Connie Meyer (3.96); 3. Devon Crotteau (3.80); 7. Nicole Kruse (3.74)

Games Played
Career – 1. Gina Langer (462); 4. Alicia Cazemier (403); 12. Nicole Kruse (312); 14. Jessica Lechner (308)

Sara Schaub was hired as the Yellowjackets' tenth head coach since the program was reinstated in 1984. Schaub’s coaching experience was most recently at Division I Eastern Michigan University where she was the first assistant since 2002.  She helped the Eagles to the program’s first Mid-America Conference West Division Championship in 2005.  Schaub’s responsibilities were recruiting, practice organization, and leading a successful volleyball camp program at Eastern.   

“I am extremely excited and honored to be the next head coach at MSU Billings,” said Schaub.  “I am very grateful to Dr. Gray and the entire search committee for giving me this opportunity.  I feel very fortunate to join such an upbeat and visionary department.  I look forward to working with the student-athletes, building an exciting program, and being part of the Billings community.”

Schaub, originally from Huron, Ohio, was a four-year starter for the Eastern Michigan Eagles as an outside hitter.  Schaub is the only player in Mid-American Conference history to average over four kills and four digs per game in the same season.  She currently holds the record at Eastern Michigan for career attack attempts and is second for career kills and digs, sixth for career aces, and seventh for career block assists.

Schaub graduated from Eastern Michigan in 2001 with a Bachelor’s in Business Administration in Accounting Information Systems.  She also holds a Master of Science in Accounting, graduating Magna Cum Laude from EMU in 2002.  In her free time, Schaub is an avid beach volleyball player and has participated in the Association of Volleyball Professionals, Extreme Volleyball Professionals, and Midwest Professional Volleyball Association, winning many events.

Jay Christensen begins the season as a first-year assistant coach for the Lady Yellowjackets. With a bachelor’s degree in Exercise Science-Sports Medicine, he also is a second year graduate student in the athletic training program. 

Christensen moved to Billings from Laie, Hawaii, and comes with a varied athletic background. All-state in soccer and four-time state champion in swimming, he played soccer for a U-17 team throughout Europe and after high school helped represent the United States, swimming in Sydney, Australia, in 2000. 

He enjoys surfing, golfing, swimming, basketball, soccer and reading.  Jay, his wife Cassandra and son Kai live in Billings.

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