Jason Walker, UP Sports Information Director 

Great Falls, Mont. - There will be plenty of volleyball action Wednesday at the McLaughlin Center when the University of Providence hosts Carroll College in Frontier Conference play. The Argos will take on the Saints JV team before the regularly scheduled match. The night match is the most important for Providence, which has dropped its first three to start league play. The Argos are looking to end that streak when the Saints come to town. Providence sits 7-14 overall while Carroll comes into the match 9-10 overall, 1-2 in the Frontier.  

The Saints feature a well-balanced attack led defensively by two-time conference Defender of the Week Julia Carr. Offensively, Carroll is formidable with Elizabeth Heuiser (252 kills) and Katherine McEuen (215 kills) leading the way. Hannah Schweikert is the main setter with 641 assists on the season. Providence will counter with the attack of Zoe Naugle, Jenna Thorne and Adysen Burns offensively, while defensively the Argos are led by Taylor Christensen and a solid rotation of teammates.  

The Argos won in five over the Saints last month at the Frontier Preseason Tournament in Billings as Thorne tallied 20 kills along with 20 digs. Burns also was big with 17 kills, 23 digs. Heuiser led Carroll with 15 kills. That match was a tight one throughout with Providence jumping out to a 2-0 lead before the Saints battled back to take the next two. Providence then used a six point run midway through the 5th to take control, winning 15-9. That match means little compared to Wednesdays with both teams looking for a conference victory. Argos Head Coach Arunas Duda says his team is ready to defend the home court, "We are really excited about the opportunity to step back out on the court and prove what kind of a team we can be. We have faced more than our fair share of adversity this year, but we are approaching it as an opportunity to improve and showcase our progress in front of an electric crowd. Our girls are preparing the right way and give them a ton of credit, they came in on Monday hungry and ready to improve. With that kind of mindset, we will continue to improve and compete in this tough conference this year." 

At 4 PM, the Argos will take on the Saints JV squad and Duda says it is a terrific opportunity for his young roster, "We are also excited for the opportunity for some of our reserve players and redshirts to compete against Carroll's JV team. This is a unique opportunity granted by the NAIA when they switched the eligibility rules last year to allowing players to be able to participate in up to 6 days of competition and still be eligible to redshirt. These players are excited for the chance to compete against a new opponent and showcase their skills, and as coaches, we get to see what kids are gamers and step up in competition. It is great for us to be able to play this match!" 

Both matches will stream at www.upargos.com and live stats will be available as well with the Frontier Conference match starting at 7 PM.