Tuesday Sports Briefs

Argos are Frontier

volleyball pick

WHITEFISH — The University of Providence is the preseason favorite, but Montana Tech is right behind in the Frontier Conference preseason volleyball poll released Tuesday.

Providence edged out the Orediggers in total votes, 23-22. Both received three first-place voters.

The Orediggers reached the NAIA National Championship Final Site for the fourth time under 11th-year head coach Brian Solomon. Tech were ranked No. 14 in the NAIA Postseason Coaches’ Top 25 poll.

Preseason coaches’ poll

Team (first-place votes) Pts

University of Providence (3) 23

Montana Tech (3) 22

Carroll College 17

Rocky Mountain College 14

Montana Western 10

MSU-Northern 6

Dawgs Frontier football favorite

WHITEFISH — Montana Western is the preseason favorite to win the 2022 Frontier Conference football championship, in a poll of the league’s head football coaches.

Carroll College and Rocky Mountain College tied for second in the balloting, released last week. Montana Western received four-first place votes, Carroll College received three and College of Idaho received one-first place vote.

College of Idaho, Montana Western and Rocky Mountain College tied for the conference

championship in 2021 with identical 7-3 conference marks.

Coaches were not allowed to vote for their own teams.

preseason coaches’ Poll

Team (first-place votes) Pts

Montana Western (4) 43

Carroll College (3) 37

Rocky Mountain College 37

College of Idaho (1) 33

Montana Tech 30

Eastern Oregon 19

Southern Oregon 17

MSU-Northern 8

Griz Hall of Fame banquet Sept. 9

MISSOULA — Tickets are now on sale for a star-studded “Pride of Montana” Grizzly Sports Hall of Fame and Grizzly Lifetime Honors Award induction banquet, set for Friday, Sept. 9 at the Adams Center.

Set to enter the Grizzly Sports Hall of Fame in the Class of 2022 are All-American runner Scott McGowan of Poplar, Lady Griz Big Sky MVP Ann (Lake) Rausch of Missoula, All-America offensive lineman Thatcher Szalay of Whitefish, and championship-winning basketball player and coach Blaine Taylor of Missoula.

Tickets cost $55 and include a seat at the banquet and plated beef dinner. Mobile and print at home tickets can be purchased at GrizTix.com, and are on sale at the Adams Center ticket office through Sept. 3.

Lady Griz center

to play in Spain

MISSOULA — Montana Lady Griz standout Abby Anderson has signed a contract to play professional basketball with Ausarta Barakaldo in northern Spain

Anderson’s contract is for seven months, longer if her team makes the LF2 playoffs next spring. She reports by Sept. 1.

In the fine print of her contract: Anderson will be required to work eight hours per week at the local university, teaching English as a second language. She doesn’t know any Spanish.

“I’m going to figure that out, hopefully soon,” says Anderson, who is from Hillsboro, Ore.

The 6-foot-2 Anderson averaged 9.8 points and 6.2 rebounds as a senior at UM, and ranked 20th in the nation in blocked shots at 2.3 per game.

— UM Communications