COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – (5) South Dakota Mines Volleyball earned a 3-2 victory over (4) UCCS in the RMAC Quarterfinals.
After dropping the first set 25-20, the Rockers answered with a 25-18 second set win. The Hardrockers went up early 7-2 in the set. That lead would extend to a 14-7 advantage until UCCS attempted a comeback as they were down 18-15. The Hardrockers stopped a comeback attempt as they won 25-18 to tie the match at 1-1.
South Dakota Mines went up 2-1 in the match following a 25-22 set three win. After going out to a 7-1 lead, the Mountain Lions hung around as they tied the set at 19-19. With their 21-20 late lead, the Hardrockers recorded a 5-1 run to win 25-21.
The Mountain Lions forced a fifth set after winning the fourth set 25-19 over the Hardrockers.
In a back-and-forth set, the Rockers came out on top with a 15-13 victory. Both teams traded points until UCCS went up 6-4. However, a Hardrocker 6-2 run would flip the score to a 10-8 advantage for South Dakota Mines.
Lexi Glendenning tallied two kills and
Maria Bouman had one to make the score 13-10.
With a 13-12 lead, Bouman recorded a solo block to make it match point. UCCS would respond with a block of their own, but Glendenning shut the door with a kill to give the Rockers a 3-2 win.
Glendenning had one of the best performances of her career, putting up a career-high 27 kills along with 12 digs. Her 27 kills marks the second-most kills by an RMAC player this season, and the second-most by a Hardrocker in a single game since at least 2007. She also hit for .310 and added two blocks.
Ivy Vindivich collected a .370 hitting percentage with 19 digs and 14 kills, her sixth double-double of the season.
Bouman picked up a .524 hitting percentage with 12 kills, five digs and four blocks.
Hannah Joseph tallied her fourth double-double of the year with 24 assists and 17 digs.
Emily Henderson added 24 assists and nine digs.
The Hardrockers hit for .250 and held UCCS to a .218 clip. They recorded 89 digs, 66 kills, 59 assists and six blocks.
With the win, South Dakota Mines improved to 20-7 overall. It marks their first 20-win season in the NCAA DII era and their first since the 2011 team went 27-5.
What's Next
The Hardrockers will play in the RMAC Semifinals on Friday night at (1) MSU Denver at 5 p.m. The winner of that contest will play the winner of (2) Colorado School of Mines and (3) Colorado Mesa on Saturday.
