Volleyball edged by North Dakota in five sets

Sunday, November 10

Grand Forks, N.D.

1 p.m.

South Dakota State University

6-20, 3-11Summit

North Dakota

12-16, 4-10Summit

South Dakota State

North Dakota

Photo by: SDSU Sports Information

11/10/2019 4:49:00 PM | Women's Volleyball

Box Score

GRAND FORKS, N.D. – The South Dakota State women's volleyball team was edged by North Dakota, 3-2 (24-26, 20-25, 25-23, 26-24, 12-15), in a five-set thriller on Sunday afternoon in Grand Forks, N.D.

The teams were tied in Summit League action headed into the match today. However, the Jackrabbits fell to 6-20 overall and 3-11 in league matches, while the Fighting Hawks improved to 12-16, 4-10 Summit League.

Three Jackrabbits reached double figures in kills, led by Ashlynn Smith with a season-high 17 kills. The senior posted a hitting clip of .333 and added two blocks. Crystal Burk and Makenzie Hennen each registered a double double. Burk posted 16 kills and 15 digs, while Hennen had 15 kills and 11 digs. Madison Fay supported the offense with a season-best 45 assists.

Tatum Pickar held a team-high 17 digs, while Anna Nerad led with three blocks.

The Jackrabbits opened the match with an early 5-2 advantage, but a 4-2 run by UND tied the match at 6-6. The score would reach a tie on 13 more occasions throughout the match until it was 24-24. Back-to-back Fighting Hawk kills gave UND a first set win by a score of 26-24.

The Fighting Hawks held a 12-6 advantage in set two when the Jacks scored five unanswered points to cut the deficit to one. UND held onto its lead for the remainder of the set, earning a 25-20 second set win.

North Dakota led throughout the third set until the score was 20-18. Five unanswered Jackrabbit points, including kills from Tori Thompson, Nerad and Burk, allowed SDSU to pull ahead, 23-20. Although UND came back to make it 24-23, a kill by Burk gave the Jacks a victory in the third set to keep them alive in the match.

The fourth set was back and forth, as a kill by Smith tied the set up late, 23-all. UND added one to take a 24-23 lead, but three consecutive UND errors gave the Jackrabbits a 26-24 win in the fourth to force a fifth set.

UND got off to an early 5-1 lead in the final frame, but State worked its way back, trailing only 13-12. Back-to-back kills gave the Fighting Hawks the victory in a crucial Summit League match with a 15-12 fifth set win.

Game Notes

The Jackrabbits are now 53-32 all-time against the Fighting Hawks.
Three Jackrabbits reached double figures in kills.
Ashlynn Smith and Madison Fay each had a season-best with 17 kills and 45 assists, respectively.

Up Next
South Dakota State is set for the final week of regular season play as it travels to take on Purdue Fort Wayne on Friday at 7 p.m.

-GoJacks.com-