2 weeks Ago By GAVIN DERKATCH406 MT Sports
BUTTE — The Frontier Conference volleyball season is about halfway complete, with each team having played seven of 15 league games. That means it's time for a break from conference action, as all six Frontier programs will be playing nonconference games this week. Rocky Mountain is set to host the North Star/Frontier Crossover Tournament starting on Thursday, with No.
19 Montana Western, MSU-Northern and No. 13 Providence all competing in Billings. No.
20 Montana Tech is travelling to Arizona for three nonconference games and Carroll will be at the Marvel Classic in Bellevue, Nebraska during its Frontier break. Here is what we learned from the last week, as well as a look ahead. At the halfway point of the season, the Argos have established themselves as the front-runner to win the league.
Providence swept both Rocky Mountain and Carroll last week to improve its record to 15-3 overall and 6-1 in conference play. The Argos' three losses this season have all come against stiff competition — undefeated No. 1 Northwestern (Iowa), No.
11 IU Kokomo and No. 20 Tech. They will get another chance at one of the NAIA's best this week, with a game against No.
2 Jamestown on Thursday night. Providence leads the Frontier in hitting percentage (.233), kills per set (14.
27) and assists per set (13.38). Two remaining matchups with Tech on Oct.
26 and Nov. 9 will be critical for the Frontier's top seed, but the Argos look like a team that can make postseason noise regardless. While there's still eight league games remaining, the standings have started taking shape.
For Western, its two wins last week were vital to keeping pace with Providence and Tech. The Bulldogs swept Carroll last Thursday before pulling out a five-set thriller over MSU-Northern on Saturday. With those wins, the Bulldogs are one game back from Tech and two games back from Providence at the top of the standings.
Of Western's eight remaining conference games, four of them are against Tech and Providence. So, the defending Frontier tournament champions are still right in the thick of things. Carroll, MSU-Northern and Rocky Mountain all sit in the bottom half of the league standings with 2-5 records in conference.
The good news for these teams is that there is plenty of time to right the ship. Also, the Saints, Battlin' Bears and Skylights have all shown flashes this season with wins over the Frontier's best. Ultimately, the goal for every program is to be playing its best volleyball at the conference tournament in Havre on Nov.
15-16. With more than half of the season left, every team in the Frontier has reason to be hopeful about a potential postseason run. The last two seasons, outside hitters from Montana Tech were tabbed as the Frontier's best players with Maureen Jessop winning the award in 2022 and Olivia Muir in 2023.
At the halfway point of the season, it feels like a good time to think about who's in the running for Player of the Year this season. Here's a look at potential POY candidates. Senior right side Nina Janjic, Providence — Janjic currently leads the Frontier in kills per set (3.
85) and is third in hitting percentage (.350). Junior setter Bella Thompson, Providence — Thompson leads the NAIA and the Frontier in assists per set (11.
67), and is fifth in the Frontier in hitting percentage (.325). Senior middle blocker Olivia LaBeau, Tech — LaBeau leads the Frontier in hitting percentage (.
365) and is fifth in kills per set (3.05). Junior outside hitter Kinnidi Willmore, Tech — Willmore is second in the Frontier in kills per set (3.
66) and is 13th in hitting percentage (.250). Senior middle hitter Alana Graves, Northern — Graves is fourth in the Frontier in kills per set (3.
06), hitting percentage (.348) and blocks per set (1.03).
The North Star/Frontier Crossover Tournament in Billings will be a peak into the future of Frontier volleyball. The league announced the addition of Bellevue (Neb.), Dakota State (SD), Mayville State (ND) and Valley City State (ND) in May.
Dickinson State (ND) was announced as a future member in December. All five schools come from the North Star Athletic Association, which will cease operation at the end of 2024-25. The five programs will all be full-time Frontier members as of 2025-26.
Dakota State, Dickinson State, Mayville State and Valley City State will all be competing at the crossover tournament in Billings. Carroll will be facing Bellevue at the Marvel Classic on Saturday. So, there will be a glimpse into the future of volleyball in the league with plenty of matchups this weekend between Frontier and North Star foes.
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