Better scratch off a career objective, too.
For Montana senior Jade Roskam, Thursday night's volleyball win against Eastern Washington was just that.
The Eagles were on a six-match winning streak and had won the last 18 meetings against Montana, including eight in a row in Missoula, before the setback.
“Eastern is a pretty big rival, at least for me,” Roskam said with a smile. “In my four years, we've never beat them so it was absolutely a great win.”
Montana improved to 6-5 in the Big Sky Conference and 10-11 overall, while securing fifth place in the standings. The Eagles dropped to 7-3 in league play and 12-9 overall.
Roskam collected 10 kills and 11 digs. All of her kills came in the final two games, including six in Game 3.
“What impressed me with Jade tonight was after a little shaky start, she really got it dialed in,” Montana coach Jerry Wagner said. “Even though she may not be the tallest outside hitter, she really started to rattle some through the block and got it going.”
In the final game Montana jumped out to an early 13-8 lead, but Roskam was just getting started. She pounded three straight kills through the Eastern Washington blockers to give the Grizzlies their biggest lead in the match at 16-9.
“I was really excited,” she said. “I just went in there with a little more aggressive attitude and it worked out well.”
The Eagles, who were in a tie for second place in the Big Sky prior to the loss, stormed back twice near the end. They closed within 20-18 before sophomore Jaimie Thibeault and Roskam went on a 3-1 spurt to make it 23-19. Setter Taryn Wright and Thibeault teamed up for a block to set up match point, but Eastern quickly closed the gap.
Three straight times, the Eagles turned to three-time conference Player of the Week Hayley Hills, but three times in a row, the Grizzlies scooped up big digs, including two from libero Brittney Brown.
“(Hills) is an amazing hitter, but I just had to step up to the plate and stay low,” said Brown, who recorded a match-high 13 digs. “Our blockers put up an awesome tunnel for me to dig the ball, so that really helped.”
Wright tried to end the late Eastern rally with her sneaky tip attack after one of Brown's digs, but the ball landed just outside, bringing the Eagles within two.
Thibeault got the job done with the match-clinching kill down the middle, though, as the Grizzlies posted a 25-22 win to seal the match.
“The hustle plays told me we were not going to be denied tonight,” Wagner said. “It was great to see all that come together like that and even though it got a little close, it was good.”
Thibeault had nine kills on a match-best .562 hitting for the Grizzlies. She also had three blocks, while Wright guided the Montana offense with 33 assists and sophomore Amy Roberts floored a team-high 11 kills.
The Grizzlies limited Eastern Washington to .104 hitting with 23 attack errors and eight serving errors on the night.
“We gave them a lot of points,” Eagles coach Miles Kyd said. “We're disappointed that it came out like that, but we know Montana is a good team.”
Hills had 28 kills in Eastern Washington's win against Montana in Cheney, Wash. on Sept. 27, but was held to 13 kills on .143 hitting in Thursday's loss. The junior outside hitter leads the Big Sky, averaging nearly 4.5 kills per game.
“We just tried to slow her down,” Wagner said.
Montana hosts Portland State on Saturday at the West Auxiliary Gym at 7 p.m.
Roskam now has a score to settle with the Vikings, who have beaten Montana seven times in a row. On Sept. 25, Portland State notched a 3-1 victory against the Grizzlies.
“This weekend is very big for us,” Roskam said. “Hopefully we can pull out another win on Saturday.”
Montana def. Eastern Washington, 25-21, 25-23, 25-22.
Kills - Eastern Washington 34 (Hayley Hills 13), Montana 39 (Amy Roberts 11). Blocks - Eastern Washington 5 (Alysha Cook 1.5), Montana 5 (Jaimie Thibeault 3). Digs - Eastern Washington 42 (Mandy Daniels 12), Montana 40 (Brittney Brown 13). Assists - Eastern Washington 32 (Ashley Hamilton 18), Montana 37 (Taryn Wright 33). Aces - Eastern Washington 4 (JaNae Mortensen 3), Montana 5 (Wright 2). Attend: 443 Time: 1:31.
Bottom line
Montana 3, Eastern Washington 0
Stars: Senior outside hitter Jade Roskam finished with a double-double, collecting 10 kills and scooping up 11 digs as the Grizzlies snapped an 18-match losing streak to Eastern Washington. The Eagles Hayley Hills tallied a match-high 13 kills.
Up next: Montana (6-5 in Big Sky Conference, 10-11 overall) stays at home to face Portland State at the West Auxiliary Gym on Saturday at 7 p.m. Eastern Washington (7-4, 12-10) faces Montana State on Saturday in Bozeman.
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