The South Dakota School of Mines volleyball team had a successful first day of competition as they split their first two matches at the Best Western West Hills Inn Eagle Classic in Chadron, NE.

The Hardrockers opened their 2019 season with a win over Montana State Billings in a tight five set match, 19-25, 25-21, 27-29, 25-18, 20-18.  Despite a slow start in set one, the Hardrockers were able to spark their fire as they changed sides for set two. They were able to find their rhythm in their line up consisting of 4 returning players and 5 newcomers. Set three proved to be another tight set as there were 20 tied points and 9 lead changes throughout the set. The Hardrockers took back control of the match in set four, as there were no lead changes after the first point scored for the Hardrockers. At point 10 Caryn Hazard rattled off 8 consecutive serves that gave the Hardrockers the momentum to close out the set at 25-18.

Set 5 was an emotional set for both teams, as there were 8 lead changes and 14 tied points. It took the Hardrockers a few extra points to secure the win in the 15 point set. In the final point Shyann Bastian served a tough ball that forced the Yellow Jackets into Caryn Hazard's block to end the match.

The Rockers ended the match with 71 kills on 193 attacks and had an overall hitting percentage of .212. Offensively, the Hardrockers were paced by Dana Thomson and Caryn Hazard who collected 23 and 16 kills.  Bastian and Addie Stanley posted 33 and 29 assists. The Rockers held a one block advantage over MSUB and were led by Hannah Stevenson who led the team with 6 block assists. Freshman Anna Thomas held down the Hardrockers defensively with 25 digs, the match high.

"Billings played out of their minds against us and it was so fun to watch our team stay in control of the tempo and energy as they battled through. Our offense was extremely well rounded in the first match which is a coach's dream and our defense pursued every ball," Lauren Torvi said.

In the second match of the day, the Hardrockers squared off with RMAC foe, Chadron State in a non-conference match.  They were able to fight their way through another 5-set match, but found themselves dropping the final set 18-16.

The Hardrockers were once paced by the offensive efforts of Thomson, Hazard and Victoria Zagorski who combined for 42 of the Hardrockers 60 kills.  Bastian and Stanley posted 23 and 20 assists while coordinating the Hardrocker offense. Once again, the Hardrocker defense was upheld by Thomas who tallied 26 digs.  Stevenson and Jacey Koethe both racked up 5 block assists throughout the match.

"I was so proud of our resilience and effort against both Billings and Chadron. Chadron played with a lot of fire in their first match of the season, and it is always a tough environment to play at their house. We have a lot of things to reflect on and learn from today as we look forward to tomorrow," Torvi said.

Next up, the Hardrockers face the University of Sioux Falls and Fort Hays to close out the Best Western West Hills Inn Eagle Classic.