Billings West two-sport star Sydney Pierce commits to Montana for volleyball

Billings West’s Sydney Pierce, before even starting her senior year at the school where she’s coming off of all-state seasons in two sports, knew for some time that she had some important ones to make regarding her college destination and what sport she’d play while there.

Basketball or volleyball? Stay local or look elsewhere? And which of Montana’s two NCAA Division I programs enticed her more — Bobcats or Grizzlies?

In the end, Pierce chose the volleyball netting, staying in the state and donning the University of Montana maroon and silver starting in 2024.

Pierce confirmed to The Billings Gazette and 406mtsports.com Saturday afternoon that she had verbally committed to the Griz volleyball team, on which she’ll play collegiately in Missoula following the conclusion of her upcoming senior year at West.

The 6-foot-4 middle blocker — who helped take the Golden Bears to a Class AA runner-up finish last season — had also been offered by Montana State and Fresno State, with the Cats and Griz being her top two choices, Pierce noted. Eventually settling on UM, however, came down to her relationship with the coaching staff and the enticing atmosphere in Missoula, she said.

“When schools could officially start talking to me, they were one of the first ones, right at 8 a.m., to text me and tell me to schedule a call,” Pierce said of the Griz coaching staff. “I kind of knew from the get-go that they wanted me, which was very fun to think about, playing for my home state. I think that’s kind of what drew me in the most … to say that I was from Montana, playing for the University of Montana.”

Pierce, also a skilled basketball player who got an all-state nod on West’s AA title-winning team earlier in the year, said that she was also getting interest from the Lady Griz hoops team and that deciding to go the volleyball route was the “hardest decision I’ve ever had to make,” but beliefs that volleyball would make her happier and lead her to more success influenced her choice, she said. 

Montana will be entering its seventh season under coach Allison Lawrence this fall, having come off the best year of her tenure to date in 2022 as the Griz went 17-12 with a 10-6 record in Big Sky Conference play. UM tied for fourth in the league as Lawrence won the Big Sky Coach of the Year award.

Pierce will join a Griz roster that’s currently slim on in-state talent as Missoula Sentinel alum Sierra Dennison and Helena Capital grad Sarah Ashley are the only Montanans on the team as of this writing. 

But with her recruitment done and dusted with no need to worry about impressing college coaches anymore, Pierce is more than happy to add one more name to that list soon.

“As soon as I committed, I just kind of felt that weight lift off my shoulders,” Pierce said. “I remember stressing about what coaches were watching, what film I needed, just basic recruiting stuff like that. And so I think now, to just kind of go through senior year knowing where I’m going and all that stuff, it’s just going to take a little bit of that pressure off, which is nice.”