DILLON — Making an appearance on the NAIA national stage is nothing new for Montana Tech or Montana Western. This time last year, both schools’ football and volleyball programs saw themselves in such a similar position. What makes this postseason unique, then, is not the “what” of the moment so much as it is everything else: the how, the why and the where.
To start, both programs at both schools will play host to their NAIA championship opening games. The as they work to advance to the final site in Sioux City, Iowa. The football teams both earned a first-round bye and the right to .
The feat of not only making it to the national championship stage while also earning the privilege of hosting the opening matches is not lost on the leaders of each program. “Hosting is a big deal,” Western football head coach Ryan Nourse told 406 MT Sports. “It means that you played some of the best football in the country, you were able to overcome obstacles and get wins where other people weren’t able to do that.
And you’ve earned the respect of your peers across the country.” Bulldogs volleyball head coach Katie Lovett echoed Nourse, saying especially after of the championship series, it means even more to her team to host an NAIA game for the first time in program history. “We really, really wanted to host this year,” Lovett told 406 MT Sports.
“That was one of our goals. And we knew it was going to be a season-long process for us to be able to do that. You have to .
