LACEY, WA — Saint Martin's Volleyball (6-18, 4-12 GNAC) faced off against the Montana State Billings Yellowjackets this past Saturday in their final home contest of the season.

In the first set, the Saints would take advantage of some early MSUB errors to get on the board and set up Emily Garten on the attack, who would land two crushing kills to set the tone for the rest of the match. She would end the night with 19 kills and an impressive .310 attack percentage in one of her best performances of the season. Emmy Hansen would prove to be a good supplementary element to the offense, landing 13 of her own kills while contributing five digs on the court and four blocks at the net. The pair of Garten and Hansen would keep the Saints in the first set as both teams would trade points down the stretch. The Saints would take the set into extra points and claim the victory thanks to a kill from Hansen by a score of 29-27. The Yellowjackets would follow up a tough first set by putting the Saints on their heels by rattling off seven consecutive points to begin the second set. Aundrea Oxentine and Zoey Crimin would see more action on the offensive side of the ball, as the pair would trade kills to keep the Saints competitive, but Billings would ultimately keep their distance and claim the second set 25-15.

Saint Martin's would respond early in the third set with a seven-point scoring run, jumping out to an 11-6 lead. The offense would be set up nicely by senior Peyton Griffin who had a career day on the last home contest of her collegiate career. She would tally 43 assists and 13 digs during the match to set career-highs in both marks. Tiffany Lam, Abigail Halstead, and Tehani Yamashita would serve as anchor defenders for the Saints, combining for 27 digs in total. Kingsley Mason would contribute on both fronts, recording seven digs and landing six kills on the night. A much more balanced attack would see the Saints win set three by a score of 25-21 thanks to a second late scoring run. The fourth and final set would see the same Saints lead the scoring efforts, with Crimin, Garten, Hansen, and Mason, staying consistent from earlier in the match. Nadia Gallegos would be a defensive game-changer later into the match, coming up with two big blocks to keep momentum with the Saints. In the end, SMU would claim the set and match by a score of 25-17.

Interim Head Coach Tracie Lindeblom was impressed with the team's efforts and was excited to get such an important win for the seniors on the team:

"I am extremely proud of how we played tonight. Coming away with a win on our last night in the Pavilion was a great way to honor our seniors who have put so much into our program. We executed our game plan and everyone made the adjustments asked of them in the moment."

The Saints would honor three seniors before the game: Abigail Halstead, Jennifer Soha, and Peyton Griffin. We thank them for their dedication and service to SMU Athletics, the University, and the wider Lacey community during their time as Saints. SMU Volleyball will wrap up its season on the road on Thursday, November 21st at Central Washington and Saturday, November 23rd at Northwest Nazarene. See more details here.