CHENEY, Wash. — Eastern Washington (11-12, 7-6) secured a hard-fought victory over Montana State (8-16, 6-7) in five sets, marking their second win over the Bobcats this season.
 
Kalista Lukovich and Tanai Jenkins were key contributors offensively, with Lukovich leading the charge with 15 kills and Jenkins adding 12. Defensively, Bri Gunderson was a dominant presence at the net, recording nine blocks, while Jannie Blake tallied 16 digs and 24 assists for her ninth double-double of the season.
 
"We've faced a lot of adversity this season, but today we played for each other," said Lukovich. "We showed how gritty and tough this team is."

The opening set was a back-and-forth battle, with both teams exchanging points until Eastern took a 15-11 lead at the media timeout. Gunderson's block and solid team defense helped the Eagles gain the advantage. After Montana State mounted a 3-0 run to close the gap to 17-14, Eastern answered with a 2-0 rally, pushing their lead to 17-11. The Bobcats fought back to tie the set at 21-21, but the Eagles regrouped and closed out the set with a 3-0 run to win 25-21.

Montana State came out strong in the second set, jumping to a 6-2 lead. Eastern called an early timeout, but MSU continued to build its advantage, eventually pulling ahead 10-6. Despite a strong push from the Eagles, including a key ace from Sadie Bacon that cut the deficit to 22-18, Montana State held firm and won the set 25-21 to tie the match at 1-1.

The third set was a back-and-forth affair until Montana State pulled ahead 15-11 at the media timeout. Eastern responded with a 7-2 run to take a 18-17 lead. Back-to-back blocks from Gunderson and Quincy Moran extended the Eagles' lead, and MSU was forced to use its final timeout at 20-17. The Bobcats couldn't recover, and Eastern took the set 25-20, moving one step closer to victory.

In the fourth set, Montana State surged ahead with a 9-5 lead. Eastern fought back, closing the gap to 15-13 at the media timeout. The Eagles then strung together a 3-0 run to take a 16-15 lead. However, MSU responded with a late rally, taking a 22-19 lead and finishing the set 25-19 to force a fifth and final set.

The decisive fifth set began with Sadie Bacon opening the scoring with a kill, followed by a block from Lukovich and Bacon. Eastern held an 8-5 lead at the media timeout, just seven points away from the win. Montana State closed the gap to 8-7, but the Eagles answered with a 2-0 rally to push their lead to 10-7, forcing MSU to call its final timeout. Eastern maintained their composure and closed out the match with a 15-11 win in the final set, taking the match 3-2.
 
Up Next
The Eagles will face off against Idaho for senior night, I their last game of the season on Reese Court on Friday, Nov. 15 at 6 p.m.
 
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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