The Idaho volleyball team grabbed the eighth and final spot in the Big Sky Tournament with wins over Montana and Montana State Friday and Saturday in the Memorial Gym.
Idaho started the weekend with a 3-0 win (25-21, 25-19, 25-18) against Montana (5-21, 2-14) Friday.
Sophomore setter Haylee Mathis led the team with 25 assists.
Mathis said the win put Idaho in a good spot to make the tournament.
“Our passing was spot on,” Mathis said. “We passed pretty high and it helped our offense a ton. It gave our pins and middles the opportunity to put balls away.”
The Vandals earned a 3-2 win in a grinding five-set match against Montana State (25-14, 25-18, 20-25, 20-25, 18-16) Saturday in the Memorial Gym.
Senior defensive specialist Terra Varney said winning on Senior Night was an amazing feeling.
“I’m so glad that we pulled it out,” Varney said. “I couldn’t have asked for a better way to end it in our home gym.”
Varney led Idaho with 20 digs, bringing her career total to 1,454.
The Vandals needed to win their last two games of the season to have a shot at the eighth seed.
After Sacramento State beat Weber State 3-0 Saturday, Idaho needed a win to advance.
The Vandals took the first two sets, while the Bobcats seized sets three and four.
Montana State (3-13, 5-20) led the fifth set 8-5. Idaho rallied back with kills by junior middle blocker Torrin Crawford and outside hitter Becca Mau to seal Idaho’s 18-16 victory.
Idaho coach Debbie Buchanan said she is proud of her team.
“We definitely started the first two games really strong but we didn’t come out after the break,” Buchanan said. “Montana State did a good job of coming out with energy, serving tough and being aggressive. If we would’ve played like we did at the end of set five, we would’ve ended it a lot sooner.”
Sophomore outside hitter Sarah Sharp ended the game with career-high 24 kills.
Idaho faces No. 1 seed North Dakota 7 p.m. Thursday in Grand Forks for the first round of the tournament.
The Vandals defeated the Fighting Hawks 3-2 Nov. 19, 2015.
“We wish it was a better seed but we’re going to take it,” Buchanan said. “It’s no different than last year, we’ve played North Dakota in the tournament and haven’t beat them in conference play. We turned it around and beat them in the tournament last year. I think our team is getting better and have the ability to win.”
Luis Torres can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter @TheLTFiles