RAPID CITY, S.D. – The South Dakota Mines Volleyball season came to a close over the weekend with two losses against Westminster and Colorado Mesa.
Match 1: Hardrockers vs. Westminster, 2-3 L
In a back-and-forth marathon, Westminster edged South Dakota Mines in five sets.
The Griffins won the first set 25-19 over the Hardrockers. They carried a 5-1 run at the beginning of the set all the way to the end to take a 1-0 lead.
In set two, the Hardrockers responded with a 25-18 victory. Both teams traded runs until the Hardrockers went on a six-point run to go up 20-15.
Cate Warren recorded three kills in that stretch. A four-point run at the end of the set tied the match at 1-1.
Westminster won the third set 25-23 over South Dakota Mines. With a 15-8 lead, the Hardrockers battled to tie the set at 20-20. However, Westminster picked up five of the last eight points to go up 2-1 in the match.
The Hardrockers forced a fifth set with their 25-20 fourth set win. South Dakota Mines went down early until a four-point run to go up 16-15. With a 21-20 lead later, Warren recorded a kill and a block to go up 23-20.
Ivy Vindivich collected a kill and
Hannah Benes' ace forced the fifth set.
Both teams traded points until the Griffins went on a run to go up 9-5. Westminster would go on to win 15-11.
Vindivich led the team with 19 kills. She also nine digs with a .319 hitting percentage.
Lexi Glendenning recorded 15 kills and three blocks. Warren put up 15 kills, three blocks and a .433 hitting percentage.
Louisa Battin recorded eight kills, 22 assists and three digs. Benes tallied 25 digs, while
Hannah Joseph had 26 assists and 10 digs for a double-double.
Match 2: Hardrockers vs. Colorado Mesa, 0-3 L
Colorado Mesa defeated South Dakota Mines 3-0 on Senior Night at the King Center.
The Mavericks won the first set 25-23. South Dakota Mines went out to a 13-6 lead early in the set. However, the Mavericks went on a big run to take a 22-20 lead. The Hardrockers attempted a comeback and took a 23-22 lead. Emma Luce tallied three straight kills to win 25-23.
In the next two sets, Colorado Mesa won 25-19 twice to sweep the Hardrockers. The Mavericks took early leads in both sets and held them all the way until the end.
Warren led the Hardrockers with 11 kills and a .474 hitting percentage. She also recorded nine digs and two blocks. Glendenning added nine kills and two blocks. Benes tallied 14 digs, while Vindivich had 12.
The Hardrockers honored six seniors on Saturday who have made a lasting impact on the program.
Morgan Daugherty,
Paisley Gibson,
Heather Jiricek, Benes,
Kiera Walsh and
Ava Sparks were all honored before Saturday's match.
With the loss, South Dakota Mines was eliminated from RMAC Tournament contention and finished the 2025 season 10-16 overall and 7-7 in the RMAC. After starting the season 0-8, the Hardrockers went 10-8 against RMAC teams.
What's Next
All-RMAC team will be announced later this year, followed by all-district teams and CSC Academic All-America teams.
