ISU Volleyball Headed to BSC Championship Match for Fourth-Straight Year

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FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. – For the fourth-straight year, the Idaho State volleyball team is heading to the Big Sky conference tournament championship match. The Bengals defeated Idaho in four sets, 25-23, 25-16, 24-26 and 25-19 to move on to the finals.

Both senior outside hitter Tressa Lyman and junior outside hitter Bailey Bars finished with double-doubles for the Bengals; Lyman with a match-high 20 kills and 12 digs for her 17th of the season, and Bars with 10 kills and 11 digs with a .444 hitting percentage. But the difference-maker for ISU was junior outside hitter Sommer Reeder who gave ISU the push it needed to take control. Reeder finished with seven clutch kills off a .353 hitting percentage.

"Sommer Reeder made the difference for us," Head Coach Rick Reynolds said. "She came off the bench and she played the way that we know she's capable of. She's been biding her time and she took advantage of that opportunity tonight."

Reeder entered the match in the first set with ISU down 17-13 and immediately made an impact with a kill to bring the Bengals within three. That kill fueled a 4-1 run to tie the match 18-all. The Bengals surged ahead behind three-straight kills from Bars and senior outside hitter Makenzie Filer to take the 22-19 lead, forcing an Idaho timeout. The Vandals made a final push but ISU held on for the 25-23 win.

In the second set the Bengals were on fire, hitting .405. Both Filer and Lyman were unstoppable in the second, notching six and five kills respectively. The Vandals kept it tight until the Bengals broke an eight-all tie after two consecutive Filer kills followed by a monster kill from Lyman. ISU kept attacking with kill after kill and made a big push to extend its lead by seven, 18-11 following three-straight kills from Reeder, Bars and sophomore outside hitter Chloe Hirst. The Bengals pushed to the 25-16 second set win and the 2-0 lead heading into the break.

The third set was tight, with both squads finishing with 15 kills apiece and nearly identical numbers in assists and digs. Play was back-and-forth featuring 13 tied scores and six lead changes, but it was Idaho who came out on top. The Vandals were accurate in their hitting with a .306 hitting percentage and capitalized on a few ISU errors to take the set 26-24.

The Bengals once again took control in the fourth registering 18 kills with a .400 hitting percentage. Idaho State's defense was on point in the fourth, digging nearly half of Idaho's total attempts and blocking four. ISU made its move with a kill from Bars to break a five-all tie and capped a 5-1 run to take the 10-6 lead. The Bengals were attacking from every angle, with five players notching at least two kills. ISU extended its lead to as many as six, 21-15, and closed out the final set with a kill from none other than Reeder to take the set 25-19 and win the match, 3-1.

"I think we're playing well at the right time," Reynolds said. "We had wake-up call yesterday and I think the last seven sets of volleyball we've been playing really well. It's now up to how we handle who we play in the conference championship match."

The Bengals will face the winner of the Northern Arizona/Sacramento State match in the conference championship match on Saturday, Nov. 21 at 7 p.m. in Rolle Activity Center in Flagstaff, Ariz.