Spring Sports Already in Full Swing at MSU Billings (Sept. 22, 2004)

BILLINGS, MT – Don’t let the date on the calendar fool you.  The collegiate spring sport season is in full swing—at least for the next few weeks.  Despite the fact that the fall sports at MSU Billings are in midseason, every sport at the school except for basketball will be competing in the next six days.

That includes the traditional spring sports which all play on the road this weekend or early next week.  While all five Yellowjacket fall sports teams—women’s soccer, men’s soccer, women’s volleyball, women’s cross-country and men’s cross-country—travel across the region for competitions in the next week, so will the five spring sports. 

The men’s and women’s tennis teams are playing at University of Mary on September 25 and 26, softball is playing at Colorado State on September 25 and 26, men’s golf is playing at Western Washington on September 27 and 28, and women’s golf (along with the men’s JV team) is playing at the Rocky Mountain Invitational on September 27 and 28.

Both tennis teams are playing their first events of the year.  Coach Jerry Peach, who recently returned from watching the U.S. Open in New York, will take the Yellowjackets to Bismarck this weekend.  Their next event will be at the Montana Invitational on October 8 and 9 in Missoula.

Both golf teams are also seeing their first action of the year.  The men’s varsity team comprised of Chris McConnell, Chris Haas, Nick Larson, Jay Bond and Zach Abels will face tough West Region competition at the Western Washington Invitational at the Bellingham Golf and Country Club.  Eleven teams will be participating in the event. 

The women’s golf team, with newly hired coach Jay Marschall, will play at the Rocky Mountain Invitational at Peter Yegen Golf Club.  Playing for the Lady Jackets will be Nicole Clayton, Julie Clifford, Halley Montalban, Amanda Rabenberg, and Nicole Salsbery.  The Yellowjacket men’s team will also be playing at Yegen.

The softball team had a successful start to its fall season last weekend, winning four of five games in Nebraska.  The Yellowjackets hit 10 home runs and scored 40 runs in the five games.  Layne Pavey hit three home runs in one game, and freshman Jenna Haacke had a pair of homers to lead the barrage.  The Yellowjackets will play at a tournament hosted by Colorado State this weekend.