DURANGO, Colo. – South Dakota Mines Volleyball went 2-0 this weekend at Western Colorado and Fort Lewis to begin RMAC play.
Match 1: Hardrockers at Western Colorado, 3-0 W
To begin RMAC play, South Dakota Mines picked up their first win of the season with a 3-0 sweep at Western Colorado.
The Hardrockers came out swinging as they dominated the first set with a 25-14 win. A 6-5 South Dakota Mines lead quickly turned into a 20-7 lead thanks to a 14-2 run. That lead held to give the Hardrockers a 1-0 match lead. South Dakota Mines tallied 16 kills and a .462 hitting percentage in the first set.
In the second set, South Dakota Mines picked up a 25-19 win to go up 2-0 in the match. With a 12-14 deficit, the Hardrockers recorded seven points in eight attempts to go up 19-15. They had eight of the last 12 points to win 25-19.
South Dakota Mines secured the match with a 26-24 win in the third set. The Hardrockers held a 13-11 lead that turned into a 20-15 Western Colorado advantage. However, the Hardrockers responded with a run to take a 22-21 lead. The Mountaineers were in a set point at 24-23 until three straight Hardrocker kills gave South Dakota Mines the win.
Morgan Daugherty and
Lexi Glendenning both led the match with 13 kills each. Daugherty recorded a .435 hitting percentage, while Glendenning had a .310 clip.
Maria Bouman had nine kills and a .667 hitting percentage for the Hardrockers.
Hannah Benes led the match with her 16 digs, while
Heather Jiricek totaled five blocks.
Hannah Joseph collected 34 assists and nine digs.
As a team, the Hardrockers had 44 kills and a .299 hitting percentage. They held the Mountaineers to just 31 kills and a .173 hitting percentage. South Dakota Mines had 46 digs to 30 for Western Colorado.
Match 2: Hardrockers at Fort Lewis, 3-2 W
In their second match of the weekend, South Dakota Mines went back-and-forth with Fort Lewis but won 3-2 at Whalen Gymnasium.
The Skyhawks won the first set 25-22 over the Hardrockers. They carried a 6-1 early lead to 23-15 late in the set. South Dakota Mines went on a six-point run but it was not enough as Fort Lewis won 25-22.
South Dakota Mines tied up the match with a 25-23 win in set two. Both teams went back-and-forth until a five-point lead made it 15-13 for the Skyhawks. The Hardrockers held a 24-21 lead and was at risk with two straight points from Fort Lewis. However, Jiricek put the set away with a kill.
In the third set, Fort Lewis responded with a 27-25 win. After a very back-and-forth set, it all came down to the end as the Hardrockers put up three straight points to go up 24-22. Five points in six attempts guided the Skyhawks to a 27-25 set three victory.
The Hardrockers forced a fifth set with a 25-20 win in set four. South Dakota Mines took a 15-12 lead in the middle of the set and that turned into 20-16. The Hardrockers held that lead the rest of the way as they won 25-20 to force a fifth set.
With a 6-6 tie in the middle the fifth, the Hardrockers put up eight points in 10 tries to go up 14-8. Daugherty and Aburto both had three kills in that run. An attack error sealed it as South Dakota Mines won 15-9 in the set and 3-2 in the match.
Aburto led the match with 21 kills, a new career high. She hit for .300 and picked up five digs and a block. Daugherty tallied 16 kills for South Dakota Mines. Glendenning had 15 kills, five digs and four blocks. Benes collected 25 digs, while Joseph recorded 55 assists, six digs and two aces.
Maria Bouman tallied four blocks.
The Hardrockers recorded 63 kills in the match. They had 10 blocks to seven for the Skyhawks. South Dakota Mines also totaled 84 digs and eight aces.
With the win, the Hardrockers move to 2-8 overall and 2-0 in the RMAC so far this season.
What's Next
South Dakota Mines will open the home slate of their season next weekend for Homecoming. Their home opener is scheduled for Sept. 26 at 6 p.m. against CSU Pueblo. They will play Colorado Christian on Sept. 27 at 6 p.m.
