BUTTE, Mont. – After dropping their first match of the day to Eastern Oregon, #24 William Carey upset Montana Tech in a five-set thriller to finish play in the Big Sky Challenge.
 
Against #5 Eastern Oregon, WCU got off to a slow start, falling behind early 9-4. After some back and forth, the Mounties seized control of the set behind a 7-1 run to take a 17-7 lead before going on to take the set 25-12.
 
Set two started like the first with EOU taking an early lead before using an 11-2 run take control, eventually taking the set 25-7. The Mounties wasted no time in set three, racing out to an 11-2 advantage and never looked back, taking the set 25-16.
 
Things were much different in their final match of the Big Sky Challenge against #17 Montana Tech. Set one saw a late rally be the difference as both teams were locked in. Things were tight early on, as neither team led by more than two points until the Orediggers went on a 9-2 run to take an 20-13 lead.
 
Despite the seven-point deficit, the Lady Crusaders regained their footing, rallying behind an 8-1 run of their own to tie the set at 21. However, those would be the last points Carey picked up, as Montana Tech closed the set with four straight points.
 
Set two saw the same back and forth from set one with WCU slowly building a 15-9 advantage. Just as Carey battled back in the first set, the Orediggers did the same, cutting the deficit to 17-15. The Lady Crusaders stopped the run and responded with an 8-4 run to close the set and even things up.
 
Nothing changed in the third set, except that there were no big rallies by either team to take control of the set. The largest lead of the set was held by Montana Tech at 14-11 which was quickly erased by WCU. From there it was a series of both teams taking turns with the lead eventually leading to extra points being needed to determine the winner.
 
The Lady Crusaders were the first team to have set point at 24-23 but a service error kept the set going. After trading points, it was the Orediggers turn to try and clinch the set but a kill by Natalie Bartholomew kept Carey alive. Bartholomew followed that kill with an ace to again give WCU set point. This time though, an attack error on the next play by Montana Tech sealed the win for Carey.
 
The Lady Crusaders stumbled a bit starting the fourth set, allowing the Orediggers to take an early 11-5 lead. WCU found their footing and battled their way back to take a 12-11 lead. After a little back and forth. The Orediggers seized control of the set behind a 9-0 run before going on to take the set 25-14 and force the deciding fifth set.
 
The Lady Crusaders quickly shook off the fourth set loss, resuming the back-and-forth battle to start the fifth set. With things remaining tight, it was Carey that slowly built a 12-9 advantage. The Orediggers would not go quietly and fought their way back to tie the set at 13. Carey would retake the lead on a kill by Sofia Bettini to put the Lady Crusaders within one point of victory and just like the ending of the third set, a Montana Tech error proved costly, sealing the victory for Carey.
 
WCU is back in action Friday, August 29-30, as they head to Omaha, Neb. To take in the CSM Labor Day Classic. On day one, Carey will take on #10 Providence (Mont.) at 2:00 pm and #23 The Master's (Calif.) at 6:00 pm.