BURNABY, B.C. – The SFU Red Leafs volleyball team continued their excellent play away from Burnaby Mountain Thursday evening, rolling into the Montana State Billings Yellowjackets' Alterowitz Gymnasium and walking out with a three-set sweep.

The victory serves as a remarkable milestone for SFU head coach Gina Schmidt, as it was her 150th as the Red Leafs' (9-5, 4-2 Great Northwest Athletic Conference) bench boss.

The contest was much closer than the sweep would indicate on the surface, as two of the three frames went to extra points. The Red Leafs continuously showed their resilience, taking the sets 30-28, 25-14 and 29-27.

Victoria, B.C.'s Jocelyn Sherman led the SFU attack with 11 kills and two aces, adding an impressive 10 digs on the defensive end. Brooke Dexter (Anchorage, Alaska) notched nine kills, 15 digs, and an ace, while senior Hanna Kolof (Vancouver) tacked on eight kills of her own. Eva Person (Brentwood Bay, B.C.) was everywhere on Saturday, as the setter parlayed her performance into 33 assists and 10 digs. Macyn Unger (Prince George, B.C.) led Canada's NCAA team with 20 digs.

The contest, neck-and-neck outside of a lopsided second stanza, was won by SFU's ability to minimize their own miscues. The Red Leafs committed just 13 attacking errors on the day, and forcing MSUB into 27 errors of their own, that margin proved the biggest difference in the match.

Sherman was especially brilliant in the later stages of the opening frame, as she ripped off three straight Red Leaf kills to help SFU pull ahead 29-28. Kolof finished the set off with a bullet of her own, getting SFU out to a strong start.
 

Up just 6-5 at one point in the second frame, SFU reeled off a quick 3-0 run to take a 9-5 lead. The Red Leafs never allowed the Yellowjackets to close in, as their margin didn't dip below four – eventually, SFU took a 25-14 decision.

The third frame saw SFU fall into a 16-10 deficit midway through – Julia Gordon, who led MSUB and the game with 13 kills, was excellent as the Yellowjackets attempted to claw their way back.

Then the tide turned. Fueled by a pair of Dexter aces and kills, as well as some unforced errors from the Yellowjackets, SFU notched 10 unanswered points to take a 20-17 lead. Gordon would smash two back-to-back kills shortly after, bringing the two sides level at 23 apiece.

At 27-27, Dexter got SFU out in front once more on a brilliant kill. Then, Kalyn Hartmann (Langley, B.C.) ended the contest via a solo block, rejecting a ball from MSUB's Paiten Langston.

Armed with another impressive win, the Red Leafs are set to face the 21st-ranked Seattle Pacific Falcons at 2 p.m. on Saturday, October 7 in Seattle.
 
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