Sioux Falls, S.D. --- South Dakota Mines volleyball ended the Augustana Classic with a 2-2 record in the two-day event, splitting on Day 1 and Day 2.
vs. Northern State
The Hardrockers fell in three sets to Northern State by scores of 25-13, 25-23, and 25-14.
How It Happened - In the first set, the Hardrockers would keep it tight early, but Northern State would pick up some momentum and close out the set, winning it 25-13.
In the second set, the Hardrockers battled throughout, cutting the Northern State lead to 24-23 on an ace by
Hannah Benes.
The third set the wolves had runs of 5-0 and 6-0 to close out the set 25-14.
Northern State was led by Abby Brooks with 18 kills and Keri Walker with 36 assists.
Notes – Jacey Koethe led the team with nine kills on a hitting percentage of.333…Freshman
Ava Sparks also had a .333 hitting percentage with three kills on nine attacks…
Kiley Metzger recorded 27 assists…
Anna Thomas was a perfect eight-for-eight on digs.
vs. MSU Moorhead
How It Happened – In The first set against MSU Moorhead was a battle throughout. The Dragons led early and midway through the set before the Hardrockers made a push to tie and a 9-3 run gave them a 22-19 lead.
Jacey Koethe (three blocks and a kill) and
Emma Grimm (two kills) were keys to the run. The set would push into extra points before two straight Hardrocker a from
Dejah Behrend and double block from Behrend and
Morgan Daugherty.
South Dakota Mines controlled the second set, starting out with an early 5-1 lead and pushing it through the finish line. Koethe had eight kills, Behrend and Daugherty added three blocks.
In the third set, the Hardrockers continued their momentum going on a run midway through the set to take an 11-6 lead and would continue to push that further with a mixed attack from
Lily Bartling, Tori Zagorski and Behrend on the attacking side.
Katie Angel and
Hannah Benes also played big roles.
Notes – Koethe was the primary offensive threat, leading with 18 kills…
Emma Grimm joined her in double digits with 12…
Dejah Behrend had four blocks…
Kiley Metzger had 46 assists.
Up Next – primary The Hardrockers begin conference play at rival Black Hills State on Tuesday, before making the long trip to Gunnison, Colorado for a match on Friday Sept, 9.
About South Dakota Mines
The South Dakota School of Mines & Technology is a member of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC) and NCAA Division II offering 11 men's and women's varsity intercollegiate athletic programs. The Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference is a premier NCAA Division II conference with 15 members, as well as four associate members, located in the states of California, Colorado, Nebraska, New Mexico, Oklahoma, South Dakota, and Utah.
