Freshman Courtney Peters Shines as Volleyball Goes 1-1 in Bozeman

This week, the North Dakota State volleyball team traveled to Bozeman, Montana, for the Bobcat Invitational, finishing the week with a 1-1 record against Montana State and the University of Portland.

Starting off the tournament, the Bison fell short to Montana State in a five-set match, ending the night with set scores of 25-20, 12-25, 25-19, 17-25 and 10-15. This ultimately came down to small team errors by the Bison, giving Montana State the momentum to push through to win in the final set.

With her first career start, freshman outside hitter Courtney Peters led the team with a match-high of 14 kills, four service aces and four blocks, as well as six digs and two assists. The senior middle blockers also had a good hitting game, with Emma Tallman recording 13 kills and Arianna Blohm with 12 kills. The Bison ended with a team total of 53 kills.

Sophomore setter Sarah Pfiffner led the team, recording a double-double and anchoring the offense with 39 of the team's 51 assists and contributing 10 digs. She has been a standout player for the Bison, not only in this game but throughout the season.

With a season-best 21 digs, sophomore defensive specialist Rya Borer anchored the back-row defense for the Bison, along with six assists. Junior setter and defensive specialist Maddy Dombeck also contributed a total of 12 digs. As a team, North Dakota State ended the night with a total of 62 digs.

On day two, the Bison played Portland, earning a 3-0 sweep with set scores of 25-21, 25-22 and 25-16. Unlike their match against Montana State, the Bison didn't let errors get to them on the court, playing a much better game.

For the second straight day, Peters led the game with 14 kills to go along with seven digs. Tying her career high with 13 kills, junior outside hitter Zoe John posted a strong game and led the team with three blocks.

Pfiffner played a good game, helping to create and move the offense as well as leading the team with 29 assists and 10 digs. This helped the team dial in the offense.

The team moves to a 5-2 overall record this season as they continue their multi-week road stretch.

This week, the team will travel to Spokane, Washington, for the weekend to play at the Zags Volleyball Classic. Their first of three matches will begin Thursday, Sept. 17, against the Montana Grizzlies at 4:30 p.m. CT.