Jackets’ Ride Ends in Regional Semifinals (11/10/06)
Box Score
Game Photos
Coach Matavao post game audio

CANYON, TX – They made school history at every turn this year, but the Montana State-Billings Yellowjackets’ season came to an end Friday night in a 3-0 loss to top-seeded West Texas A&M in the semifinals of the NCAA Southwest Region Tournament.  The Lady Buffs (32-3) advanced to face Mesa State in the regional championship on Saturday.  Third-seeded Mesa survived several match points against second-seed Metro State to win 3-2.

In Friday’s second semifinal, the Jackets picked up right where they left off in Thursday’s first round win over Western New Mexico.  Game one started with a 3-3 tie, but the Jackets quieted a boisterous home crowd by pulling out to a 12-6 lead.  The Jackets’ middle of Alicia Cazemier (Vauxhall, AB) and Jessica Lechner (Pompeys Pillar, MT) did much of the damage during the run.

“We knew we couldn’t play from behind tonight,” said Yellowjacket coach Pa’ulasi Matavao.  “We had to try to get into an early lead.  I thought game one was going to be the crucial game for us.  I knew it was going to be a tough place to play.  I thought our kids did a pretty good job early in game one.  We knew how crucial that was.”

MSUB’s lead grew to 14-8 before the Buffs started to chip away at the lead.  WTAMU finally caught the Jackets at 20-20, but MSUB was able to hang on until the Buffs finally took the lead at 25-24.  The Yellowjackets responded with a 4-1 run that put them in position to win the game with a 28-26 lead.  But the Buffs answered with their own 5-1 run to capture the game and the momentum.

The first game loss bolstered the home crowd and seemed to take the wind out of the Jackets’ sails.  Despite a close second game that the Buffs won 30-27, the Jackets never led.  Their final lead of the night came at 1-0 of game three which they eventually lost 30-18.  MSUB hit just .026 as a team in the final game with 12 kills and 11 errors. 

Unforced errors were the Jackets’ undoing.  They finished the night with a .164 team attack percentage, offsetting their 53 kills with 30 errors.  The Buffs hit .323 and had just 11 errors in the match.

“On our side, we did all the stuff we were trying to do tonight,” said Matavao.  “We wanted to pass the ball well, serve it tough, and work on the middle to open the outside.  I think we were able to do that, but they put up good blocks on their side and they’re a consistent team.  We found that out tonight.  They don’t make a lot of mistakes.”

Four Yellowjackets finished in double figures for kills, led by Ali Watson’s (Calgary, AB) 15.  Jessica Bratton (Casper, WY) added 11 kills.  However, the two outside hitters combined for 17 errors.  Cazemier and Lechner each knocked down 10 kills.  Nicole Kruse (Huntley, MT) led all players with 13 digs, and Watson picked up 12 digs.  Senior setter Natalie Bills (Provo, UT) finished with 43 assists.

The Lady Buffs were led by Natalie Johnson’s 16 kills on a .438 attack percentage.  Rachel Altman and Jessica Scherr each had 13 kills.  Altman hit .464 for the match, and Scherr led the Buffs with 11 digs.  Libby Garza handed out 44 assists.

The Lady Jackets finished their season with a 26-5 record and a permanent spot in Yellowjacket history.  Last year, essentially the same Yellowjacket team came within one win of reaching their first NCAA Tournament in school history.  A 3-1 loss to Western New Mexico in the Heartland Conference championship sent the Yellowjackets into the off season with high ambitions.  That 2005 squad had only eight players, and all eight returned in 2006 to carry the team to the round of 32 at the NCAA Tourney.

The Yellowjackets entered the NCAA Tournament as an unknown even though they went 10-0 in the Heartland Conference and won the conference championship tournament.  MSUB was the only team out of the Heartland to earn a spot in the NCAA Tournament.  Five of the eight teams in the Southwest Regional were from the powerful Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference, and two were from the Lone Star Conference. 

Despite the unblemished record in the Heartland, the Yellowjackets received the No. 5 seed at the regional.  In Thursday’s first round, they upset fourth-seeded Western New Mexico, sweeping the Mustangs in three games.  The Mustangs entered the tournament with a 21-8 all-time record against the Yellowjackets, but the Jackets got over the hump when the stakes were the highest.

“We couldn’t ask for more,” said Bills after Friday’s loss, her final match as a Yellowjacket.  “It’s hard to swallow (the loss), but we couldn’t ask for a better team.  We’re so close.  We did our best.  We made it to the regional semifinals, and that’s better than anyone expected.”