MISSOULA, Mont. — Playing a hot Montana team on the Grizzlies' Senior Day, the Portland State volleyball team couldn't muster the same magic as Thursday night when they erased a 2-1 deficit to beat Montana State on the road. Instead, the Grizzlies used a close second-set victory to sweep the Vikings (25-15, 27-25, 25-17) Saturday night at Dahlberg Arena.
 
The Grizzlies (10-16, 5-10 Big Sky) – winners of their last four matches now – outhit the Vikings (7-18, 6-8 Big Sky) .296-to-.121. The Grizzlies hit over .300 in both of the first two sets of the match, while the Vikings didn't top .100 in either the first or third sets.
 
"We knew they would be playing inspired on their Senior Night. That is a good team who plays really well at home. We had some key matchups that we liked, but were unable to execute," Portland State head coach Michael Seemann said after the match.
 
"We created a lot of good opportunities defensively with tough serving and smart attacking but were unable to convert them into points."
 
To Seemann's point, the Vikings aced the Grizzlies five times Saturday and had other tough serves that got the Grizzlies out of system. The five aces in three sets marked the best serving performance the Vikings have had away from home since they had six in three sets at Oregon State on Sept. 20.
 
But the Vikings couldn't capitalize offensively. Two days after the Vikings had five players finish in double figures for kills, only one – Devon DeNecochea – cracked 10 kills Saturday. DeNecochea, who was the spark that led the Vikings to their comeback Thursday, continued her hot streak with 10 kills on .318 hitting in the match.
 
Carisa Barron added nine kills on .051 hitting, while Naomi White finished with seven kills on .438 hitting from the middle. No other Viking finished with more than three kills in the match.
 
Montana asserted itself early. By the time they led 13-6 in the first set, the Grizzlies were hitting .600 as they cruised to a 1-0 lead in the match.
 
The Vikings found their footing in the second set. Barron helped the Vikings erase a mini lead for Montana with three straight kills that gave the Vikings a 16-15 advantage. The Grizzlies won seven of the next eight points to go back in front, however, then earned four set points when a PSU service error gave them a 24-20 lead. The Vikings saved the first two set points on kills from Makayla Lewis and White, then induced a Montana attack error to make it 24-23. Lewis aced the Grizzlies on the next point to make it 24-all.
 
The Grizzlies went back in front with a kill from Paige Clark, but White snuffed that out with another kill to make it 25-all. A PSU service error gave the Grizzlies their sixth set point, and this time they'd convert with another kill from Clark.
 
The Grizzlies took control early in the third set, going up 8-3. The Vikings got back within two with a 4-0 run later in the set. DeNeCochea put down a kill to start the run. Lewis followed with a solo block, while Reese Biesemeyer added a kill then combined with DeNecochea for a block that made it 15-13 Montana.
 
But the Grizzlies answered with a 6-0 spurt that put them in full control for the rest of the set.
 
The Vikings could have clinched a spot at the Big Sky tournament with a win Saturday. They still may have done enough to get into the tournament given other results around the conference. Still, they'd like to leave little doubt with a win next weekend when they close out the regular season at home against Weber State (Thursday, 7 p.m.) and Idaho State (Saturday, 7 p.m.).
 
"We have used every person on this team all year with just about every combination you can imagine. That will serve us well as we close in on the regular season," Seemann said. "We all have developed roles on this team. Lack of experience is no longer an excuse. When we put this all together, we will put ourselves in a position to win."
 
Match Notes: The Vikings still lead the all-time series between them and the Grizzlies, 57-21, despite Saturday's loss…The Vikings have dropped their last three matches against Montana in Missoula, however.
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