GREELEY, Colo. — The postseason is full of ups and downs that can change rapidly. After pulling the upset of the defending Big Sky Champions last night, Eastern Washington volleyball bowed out of the Big Sky Tournament tonight against Montana State. The Bobcats defeated the Eagles, 3-1, ending EWU's season.
Sage Brustad closed out her Eastern career in style, going for 22 kills and 12 digs, with a .347 hitting percentage. Bri Gunderson had 11 kills with a .333 percentage.
"I'm really proud of our team all season. Going into the tournament, we asked them to come out and compete. That was the message this week and I thought they did that tonight," head coach Jon Haruguchi said. "This game is very streaky and we saw that with most of the matches this weekend, ours included. [Sage Brustad] stepped up big time for herself, her teammates and her school. I'm really happy with the performance she turned into today. She really led by example and that was a great thing to see."
Montana St. was in control out of the gate against Eastern, building a 9-3 lead. The Eagles were not deterred and focused on being efficient in their attacks. Brustad notched a pair of kills to keep EWU in striking distance. Down the stretch, Eastern tied the game at 20, getting key blocks from Gunderson. The Bobcats ripped off a quick 3-0 lead to give them the separation they needed. MSU won the set, 25-22 and had the lead in the game.
The Eagles flipped the momentum quickly in the second set, establishing a 7-3 advantage over the Bobcats. Brustad and Gunderson continued to swing well to maintain the lead for EWU. Erin McInnes was effective in the middle, as well, recording a pair of kills and a solo block. Eastern cruised to a 25-16 set win and tied the game at one. The Eagles had a .357 attack percentage in the set.
The third set was a series of runs from both teams, as MSU jumped ahead quickly with a 6-1 lead. The Bobcats then pushed their advantage out to 11-4. Gunderson fired in a pair of kills to try and get EWU back in the game. MSU had the counter, and went up 17-10. Eastern responded, going on a 5-0 run to cut the lead down to a pair, highlighted by a black from Sadie Bacon and Tanai Jenkins. The Bobcats, again, had the answer with a 7-1 stretch to push to get to set point. EWU would get two points, but MSU clinched the set at 25-18 and led 2-1 in the game.
Both teams asserted themselves early in the fourth set, with the teams tying at five all and eight all. MSU then separated with a 5-0 run. A quick 4-1 burst from Eastern stopped the bleeding and kept the set competitive. Brustad had two kills, while Jenkins added one and Kate Hatch delivered with an ace. The Bobcats were determined to end the game in four sets and extended their lead out to 21-15. EWU did not go quietly and organized a 6-1 stretch to bring the MSU lead down to one. Brustad was the engine, getting four kills during the stretch. Eastern tied the Bobcats at 24 on a kill from Bacon, before taking a one-point lead with a block from Gunderson and Kalista Lukovich. The Eagles could not find the clinching point, while MSU recovered and pushed for a 28-26 win in the fourth set to earn the game victory.
"We knew we wanted to perform well, but we also wanted to show the growth that this program has taken on this past year. We are really pleased with what our players have shown us and what they're producing," Haruguchi added. "Above all else, we want them to see the fruits of their efforts and we saw that this week. We are making progress and progress is not a straight line. We're trending in the right direction and getting the right people here. The improvement is noticeable from last year and it's a remarkable jump. We're thankful for everyone who came before us in this program. We want to just continue building on the legacy of Eastern Washington volleyball."
Eagle Notes
- Sage Brustad posted her 14th double-double of the season. Brustad finished with seven career 20-point games and her fourth this season.
- Eastern finished with 8.0 blocks to Montana State's 5.0. Bri Gunderson and Sadie Bacon each had four block assists in the game.
- Kate Hatch tallied 20 assists and 14 digs for her seventh double-double of the season.
- The Eagles had seven aces and seven errors at the service line tonight. Jannie Blake led the team with three, while Hatch had two.
- EWU had a .261 attack percentage in the game, while the Bobcats held a .243 stat line.
ABOUT EASTERN WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY ATHLETICS
Eastern Washington University Athletics sponsors 14 intercollegiate sports, six for men and eight for women, both as learning opportunities for its most athletically talented students and as an enhancement to student and community life. Eastern is affiliated with Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and is a member of the Big Sky Conference, an association of 10 regional schools with comparable enrollments and academic goals.
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