Volleyball kicks off Summit League action

Friday, September 27

Brookings, S.D.

7 p.m.

South Dakota State University

North Dakota State

Photo by: SDSU Sports Information

9/25/2019 11:32:00 AM | Women's Volleyball

MATCHES 13 & 14: South Dakota State (3-9, 0-0); North Dakota State (5-7, 0-0); Western Illinois (3-11, 0-1)

When	Friday, Sept. 27, 2019 \| 7 p.m.	Sunday, Sept. 29, 2019 \| 1 p.m.
Where	Frost Arena I Brookings, S.D.	Sanford Pentagon \| Sioux Falls, S.D.
Live Video	Jackrabbits All-Access
Live Stats	GoJacksLive.com	GoJacksLive.com
Game Notes	South Dakota State \| North Dakota State
Social Media	Twitter \| Facebook \| #PERFORM

The South Dakota State women's volleyball team opens Summit League play as it hosts North Dakota State on Friday at 7 p.m. On Sunday, the Jackrabbits will take on Western Illinois at 1 p.m. in their annual Pink Match at the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls.

PINK MATCH
For the fifth consecutive year, the Sanford Pentagon is the site for the Jackrabbits' Pink Match. The match aims to raise awareness for breast cancer awareness. The Jacks will be wearing pink jerseys, which will be auctioned off to raise money for the Edith Sanford Breast Cancer Foundation. Additionally, the team will also be accepting donations for Team Edith.

LAST TIME OUT
The Jacks fell to 3-9 overall after going 0-3 as they hosted the Comfort Suites University Jackrabbit Invitational last weekend. SDSU fell to Valparaiso, 3-0 (20-25, 22-25, 13-25), Milwaukee, 3-2 (25-22, 25-18, 21-25, 21-25, 10-15) and Kansas City, 3-1 (25-14, 15-25, 16-25, 10-25).

Makenzie Hennen was named to the Comfort Suites University Jackrabbit Invitational all-tournament team after recording 50 kills on the weekend including tying her career-best of 24 kills against Milwaukee. The senior also registered double-doubles against Valparaiso (12 kills and 11 digs) and Kansas City (14 kills and 13 digs).

SCOUTING THE OPPONENTS
After non-conference play, North Dakota State holds a 5-7 record. Most recently, the Bison went 0-3 at the Tennessee Classic where they fell to Georgia Southern (3-0), East Tennessee State (3-1) and Tennessee (3-0). Alexis Bachmeier paces the offense for NDSU with 125 kills and 15 service aces. Allie Mauch and Kalli Hegerle add 101 and 100 kills, respectively. Hegerle has dished out 203 assists and ranks second in the nation with four triple-doubles. Kaylee Hanger leads the back-row defense with 134 digs, while Bachmeier adds 129. At the net, Bella Lien holds a team-best 42 blocks. The Bison are under the direction of third-year head coach Jennifer Lopez who has a record of 33-36. The Jacks trail North Dakota State 78-19 in the all-time series. A season ago, SDSU went 0-2 against the Bison, falling 3-0 and 3-1.

Western Illinois holds a 3-11 record as it enters league play. The Leathernecks are on a eight game losing streak after most recently falling to Purdue Fort Wayne, 3-0, in the first Summit League match of the season. A pair of Leathernecks in JoJo Kruize and Mariah Mitchell lead the offense with 119 and 116 kills, respectively. Jessie Connell holds team-bests of 258 assists and 25 service aces. Defensively, Gabby DePersio has registered 174 digs, while Mackenzie Steckler ranks first in the Summit League and sixth in the nation with 74 blocks. Western Illinois in under the direction of head coach Ben Staupe who is in his second season with a record of 3-26. South Dakota State leads the all-time series against Western Illinois, 17-9. The Jacks split their pair of matches against the Leathernecks last season, capturing a win in the first meeting, 3-2, and falling 3-1 in the final match of the season.

POSITION RUNDOWN
Outside Hitters

Makenzie Hennen has a total of 154 kills, 127 digs and 12 blocks. She has recorded double digit kill totals in nine of the 12 matches the Jacks have played, while registering a double-double in six matches. The senior holds a hitting percentage of .171 including a career best mark of .556 in the Jacks' win over Prairie View A&M. She tied her career-best of 24 kills against Milwaukee. Hennen ranks sixth in the Summit League in total kills (154) and fifth in kills per set (3.42).
Ranking second in kills with 102 is Ashlynn Smith, who also has 27 digs, 19 blocks and nine service aces. The senior was named to the Katrinka Crawford Invitational all-tournament team.
Crystal Burk has tallied 98 kills, 10 service aces and 109 digs. She registered a career-best 19 kills against Memphis on a season-high hitting percentage of .417. Burk notched her fourth ever double-double against Eastern Illinois with 14 kills and 10 digs. Against Kansas City, she recorded a career high of 19 digs. The sophomore was named to the EIU Panther Invitational all-tournament team.

Middles

A pair of freshman, in Anna Nerad and Tori Thompson, cover the middle for the Jacks. Nerad has led SDSU's blocking in seven matches including a career high of seven blocks against Louisiana Monroe. She has a total of 40 blocks, 49 kills and 25 digs. Thompson has tallied 53 kills and 20 blocks, including a career-best performance against Fresno State with 12 kills on a .550 hitting percentage.

Back Row

Tatum Pickar paces the Jacks with 167 digs, averaging 3.71 digs per set. She has also posted seven service aces. Drew McDougall has earned some playing time as a freshman and has tallied 47 digs.

Setters

Carly Wedel and Madison Fay aid the offense with 206 and 198 assists, respectively. Wedel posted a career-best 51 assists against Milwaukee.

POST SEASON ACCOLADES
Makenzie Hennen became the first Jackrabbit since Ashley Beaner in 2016 and the eighth overall to earn all-league honors as she was named honorable mention All-Summit League.

After posting a 3.425 GPA as a team, the Jacks were recognized by the American Volleyball Coaches Association, earning the Team Academic Award for the 2018-2019 season.

#PERFORM
With #PERFORM as the official hashtag for the 2019 campaign, SDSU looks to take the next step in Cirillo's fifth season. SDSU closed last year with a pair of wins in its final five matches, and seven Jackrabbit returners blend with eight promising newcomers on this year's team.

SMITH, HENNEN NAMED PLAYERS TO WATCH
SDSU's Ashlynn Smith and Mackenzie Hennen were recognized by the Summit League as 2019 Volleyball Players to Watch.

Smith started 25 of 29 matches for South Dakota State last season, finishing second on the team in kills (251) and kills per set (2.46). The Laporte, Indiana native recorded a pair of double-doubles and had double-digit in 10 matches.

Hennen, an All-Summit League honorable mention pick in 2018, started all 29 matches and was the team's top all-around threat. She led the Jackrabbits in kills (340), kills per set (3.27) and attempts (1,098) while sitting second in digs (281), service aces (13), digs per set (2.70) and solo blocks (seven). The Jordan, Minnesota native had two 20-kill matches, 18 10-kill matches and 13 double-doubles. Hennen has 725 career kills and is on pace to reach 1,000 kills before her collegiate career comes to a close.

-GoJacks.com-