RAPID CITY, S.D. – The South Dakota Mines volleyball team has been on fire and continued that trend on Saturday as they took on the 14th-ranked Colorado Mesa Mavericks.
The Mavericks came into Rapid City with a 22-3 overall record and a 12-1 RMAC mark, but that didn't deter the Hardrockers, who continued to stay hot, taking the five-set match, winning their sixth straight overall and moving to 9-0 in the King Center to finish the regular season undefeated.
Overall, the Hardrockers moved to 18-8 and 11-3 in the RMAC.
HOW IT HAPPENED
South Dakota Mines started fast in the first set, taking a 10-4 lead, but Colorado Mesa worked their way back into it, taking a 20-19 lead before winning the set, 25-21.
The Hardrockers again started fast in the second set, up 9-4 early. This time, they were able to hold onto it as they dominated the set, winning it 25-15 to even the match at 1-1.
In the third set, the Hardrockers kept their momentum going to get another set win. However, it went back and forth. At 13-13, South Dakota Mines scored eight straight points to grab a 21-13 lead and eventually took the set, 25-20.
Colorado Mesa grabbed the momentum back in the fourth set., taking a 14-9 lead and then taking over, winning it 25-13 to push the match to a fifth and deciding set.
The fifth set went back-and-forth ties and trading leads. The Hardrockers took an 8-7 lead at the switch after a
Kiley Metzger kill, but Colorado Mesa forced a tie at nine before taking an 11-10 lead. Kills by
Alessandra Meoni and Kiley regained the lead for SDM at 12-11. With the game tied at 13, the Hardrockers earned the final two points, winning it 15-13.
NOTES
Alessandra Meoni led the team in kills with 16, adding 15 digs for a double-double…
Jenna Curtis was also in double-digits, recording 13 kills…
Kiley Metzger and
Maria Bouman each posted hitting percentages of .300 or higher, with Metzger hitting .364 while Bouman was at .300…Metzger posted 37 assists and 15 digs…
Hannah Benes had 28 digs, while
Emma Grimm also added 11.
UP NEXT
South Dakota Mines will face the sixth seed in the opening round of the RMAC playoffs on Tuesday at 7:00 p.m. at the King Center.
You can find the latest on South Dakota Mines volleyball all year long on X and Instagram (@hardrockervb), and you can also follow on Facebook at Hardrocker Volleyball. The latest on South Dakota Mines athletics can be found by following us on X at @GoHardrockers, hardrockerathletics on Instagram, and Hardrocker Athletics on Facebook.
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 13 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.
