October 27, 2017
PHOTO GALLERY - Photo credits by Cody Welu
MADISON, S.D. – Dakota State (S.D.) kicked off their five-match home stand Friday evening at DSU Fieldhouse, hosting Dickinson State (N.D.) in a key North Star Athletic Association conference volleyball match. The Blue Hawks stopped Trojans' four-match winning streak by earning a 3-1 victory (25-16, 21-25, 25-20 and 26-24).
Dakota State fell to 10-21 overall record. Dickinson State improved to 6-14 overall record. Both teams are 4-8 record in the North Star conference play, tied for sixth-place in the North Star conference standings (top six teams in the conference standings qualify for the conference postseason tournament, which begins on Nov. 10).
FIRST SET
Both Trojans and Blue Hawks went through a see-saw battle in the first 24 points. Trailing 12-11, Dickinson State went on a 12-2 scoring surge for the biggest lead of the first set at 23-14. DiSU went on to grab a 1-0 match lead after securing a 25-16 victory.
The Blue Hawks outhit the Trojans 12-6 in the first set. DiSU hit .156 (7 errors in 32 attempts) while holding DaSU to a negative .088 hitting efficiency (9 errors in 34 attempts).
SECOND SET
Dickinson State opened up the second set with a 5-1 lead. Down 11-9, the Trojans went on a 9-3 run to earn an 18-14 lead. The Blue Hawks answered back with a 4-0 run to tie at 18-18, but the Trojans scored four straight points for a 22-18 lead.
Dakota State held on to win the second set by the score of 25-21, tying the match at 1-1. Both teams pounded 14 kills. The Trojans hit an impressive .303 (4 errors in 33 attempts) compared to the Blue Hawks .189 hitting efficiency (7 errors in 37 attempts).
THIRD SET
Dickinson State broke a 4-4 tie into a 9-4 lead after scoring five consecutive points, forcing Dakota State to take a timeout. The Trojans could get no closer than one point at 13-12 as the Blue Hawks never looked back for a 25-20 victory. DiSU regained a 2-1 match lead.
The Blue Hawks smashed 11 kills with 5 errors in 33 attempts for a hitting percentage of .182. The Trojans registered a hitting efficiency of .143 (10 kills with 6 errors in 28 attempts).
FOURTH SET
Dakota State and Dickinson State went back-and-fourth in the fourth set, with the lead no more than three points through the first 36 rallies. Tied at 18-18, the Blue Hawks went on a 5-2 run for a 23-20 lead.
The Trojans roared back by scoring three straight points to knot at 23-23. After DiSU earned a match point at 24-23, DaSU saved the match points thanks to a kill by Kaylee Spreier to tie at 24-24.
Dickinson State sealed the match at 26-24 after a kill by Kylie Hadley and a block from Sage Collins and Shelby Gustafson.
DiSU outhit DaSU 16-12 in the fourth set. The Blue Hawks hit .167 (8 errors in 48 attempts) compared to the Trojans' .175 hitting percentage (5 errors in 40 attempts).
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
Carly Rozell smashed a match-high 13 kills for Dakota State. It was her seventh straight match that she had recorded double-digit kills. Samantha Zell pounded nine kills and hit a match-high .412. Spreier added seven kills. Maddie Polzin had six kills.
Rachel Johnson produced 21 assists for the Trojans. Kendra Steffen added 14 assists. Each Johnson and Steffen had nine digs.
Jazmayne Williams collected 11 digs for DaSU. Rozell added nine digs. Spreier had four block assists and a solo block. Rozell had three block assists. Polzin registered two service aces. Mallory Testerman had an ace.
Three DiSU players recorded double-digit kills, led by Hadley with 12 kills. Gustafson and Collins each added 10 kills. Shyanne Gilcrist had nine kills.
Brianna Holland contributed 28 set assists for the Blue Hawks. Makenzie Digesualdo had 16 assists.
Shaylee Singleton led Dickinson State's defense with 22 digs. Hadley posted a double-double with 10 digs. She added three service aces. Gustafson recorded three solo blocks and three block assists.
Dickinson State outhit Dakota State 53-42 in the match. The Blue Hawks hit .173 (27 errors in 150 attempts) compared to the Trojans' .133 hitting efficiency (24 errors in 135 attempts).
DiSU was 92.7 percent from the serving line, recording 6 aces with 7 errors in 96 serves. DaSU recorded 93.0 percent serving rate with 3 aces and 6 errors in 86 attempts. The Blue Hawks had eight blocks, while the Trojans had six blocks.
UP NEXT
Dakota State continues their home stand Saturday afternoon, hosting the nationally-ranked No. 19 Jamestown (N.D.) in the North Star conference action. The annual Dig Pink match is set for 4 p.m. at DSU Fieldhouse.
Dickinson State travels to No. 23-ranked Bellevue (Neb.) for a North Star conference action. First serve is set for 3 p.m. at Gordon Lozier Athletic Center in Bellevue, Neb.
Nick Huntimer, Dakota State University Sports Information Director
