BURNABY, B.C. – The Simon Fraser women's volleyball team swept the visiting Montana State Billings Yellowjackets 3-0 Thursday, on the first night of Socktoberfest weekend on Burnaby Mountain. SFU won the Great Northwest Athletic Conference matchup at the West Gym by set scores of 25-19, 25-21, 25-19.
 
"It was a good, consistent effort from start to finish that allowed us to weather their runs. I thought we stayed even-keeled throughout so it was nice to see," said SFU head coach Gina Schmidt, whose team improved to 11-4 overall, and 5-3 in league play.
 
Jocelyn Sherman had 14 kills to pace the hosts' offensive attack, while Brooke Dexter and Hanna Kolof chipped in with 12 and eight kills, respectively. Kolof also had 13 digs.
 
Julia Tays had a fantastic night, as she led SFU in assists (38) and service aces (three), and was the squad's co-leader in blocks with four block assists, tied with Kalyn Hartmann. Bianca Te had a team-best 14 digs.  
 
With strong defensive play, SFU didn't allow any of MSUB's dynamic hitters to reach double digits in kills. Bayli Monck knocked down nine to lead the Yellowjackets. Skylar Reed had seven, and Hannah Hayden six, as the Yellowjackets fell to 7-10 (3-5 GNAC).
 
"We talked before the game about finding MSUB's key hitters and I thought we did a good job neutralizing them and I think that was the key to the match," remarked Schmidt.
 
The teams split the first 14 points of the opening set, before SFU took control with an 8-1 run. Hartmann served up two aces and added a kill in that stretch, while Sherman also chipped in with a pair of kills.
 
Up 15-8, SFU didn't allow for a large momentum swing the rest of the way. MSUB's longest string of points was three in a row to close to 15-11. After a Sherman kill gave the home side its first set point at 24-19, Tays delivered an ace on the next play to clinch the set.
 
SFU continued its momentum into the second set, using an early 9-1 surge to go ahead 10-3. The visitors contributed four attack errors and one on serve, while Hartmann recorded three kills and a block assist (with Tays). Kolof added a kill as well.
 

The Yellowjackets patiently chipped away at their deficit, and closed the gap to 16-14. But SFU responded by winning the next four points to regain momentum. Hartmann and Tays teamed up again for a block, then Hartmann and Sherman got kills before Kolof capped things off with an ace. The 20-14 scoreline was too much for MSUB to overcome down the stretch.
 
The final set saw more back-and-forth action, with the Yellowjackets claiming leads at 12-11 and 13-12. But they couldn't fight off a determined SFU group. A Hartmann kill sparked the hosts, who won six of seven points to go ahead 18-14. There were two kills each from Hartmann and Kolof, and a big solo block from Sherman as part of the run, as well as an MSUB attack error. From there, the teams essentially traded points until kills from Dexter and Kolof concluded the third set and the match.
 
As a team, SFU's hitting percentage on Thursday night was .220, while MSUB attacked at an .104 clip. The home team also held a 9-3 edge in service aces.
 
Fans will once again have a chance to win SFU-branded socks on Saturday as part of Socktoberfest weekend, when Seattle Pacific comes to the West Gym for a 4 p.m. GNAC women's volleyball showdown.

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