BUTTE -- Payton Treadwell put down 10 kills, Rhys Layton dished out 21 assists, and the 21st-ranked Montana Tech volleyball team debuted at home Wednesday evening with a 25-20, 25-14, 25-20 sweep of rival Montana Western in Frontier Conference play. 

Half of Treadwell's 20 attack attempts resulted in kills in the rout as the junior hit .350 for the match. 

The Orediggers (7-2, 3-0 Frontier) also got eight kills apiece from Madison Biery, Talan Dodson, and Kinnidi Willmore. Libero Emmy Green chipped in a team-best 13 digs, and Ellie Reinertson added 12 assists. 

The match's first set was back-and-forth until the final few points, when the Orediggers ripped off a 4-0 run to take the early lead. 

Tech dominated in the second, hitting .560 along the way. Treadwell collected four of her 10 kills in the second, and Biery, Dodson, and Willmore contributed three each. The Orediggers made just two attack errors in the frame. 

The home team looked to be cruising in the third, too, leaping out to an 8-3 lead before the Bulldogs (4-6, 2-1) climbed back in. Clinging to a 23-20 lead, Tech forced its opponent into errors on the final two balls of the match to clinch the sweep. 

It was the Orediggers' first sweep of Western since November 1, 2023 in Dillon. 

Montana Tech has won five straight matches — four of them sweeps — and sits tied atop the Frontier Conference standings with No. 5 Providence and Dickinson State. 

The Orediggers will look to stay unbeaten in conference play Friday evening at 7 when Bismarck State comes to Butte for the first-ever match between the new league opponents. The community is invited to an open house event showcasing the upcoming HPER Complex Modernization Project starting at 5 p.m. 

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