November 2, 2018

PARENTS NIGHT PHOTO GALLERY

MADISON, S.D. – Dakota State (S.D.) smashed at least 15 kills in each set Friday evening, rolling past Waldorf (Iowa) in four sets in the North Star Athletic Association volleyball conference match at DSU Fieldhouse.  The Trojans won by the set scores of 25-22, 25-12, 23-25 and 25-12.

Dakota State won their second straight match, lifting their overall record to 16-12.  The victory also secured a winning season for the first time since 2015 (20-14 overall record).  Waldorf dropped to 6-20 overall record.

The Trojans moved in a two-way tie for third in the North Star conference standings with a 7-6 record (seven NSAA conference wins – the most since 2015).  The loss officially eliminated the Warriors from the North Star conference postseason tournament.  WU is 3-10 overall record, tied for seventh with Presentation (S.D.) after their 3-2 road defeat at Dickinson State (N.D.) Friday.

FIRST SET

Waldorf opened up with a 16-11 lead before Dakota State rallied back to overtake the lead.  Trailing 20-16, the Trojans roared with a 9-2 outburst to earn a 1-0 match lead after a 25-22 victory. 

Samantha Zell recorded two kills during the DSU's scoring surge, including a kill at DSU's set point (24-22).  Kelsey Pearson and Maddie Polzin each added a kill during the scoring run, as well as a service ace by Barbara Briceno.

DSU outhit WU 16-10 in the first set.  The Trojans hit .204 (6 errors in 49 attempts) and held the Warriors to .071 hitting percentage (7 errors in 42 swings).

SECOND SET

Leading 15-11 in the second set, Dakota State used another strong closing run to extend their match lead to 2-0.  The Trojans closed the set with a monstrous 10-1 run, cruising to a 25-12 victory.  Briceno smashed four kills during DSU's scoring run.  Kaylee Spreier added two kills, while Anna Schwint had a kill.  Peyton Groft registered a service ace during Trojans' offensive outburst.

Dakota State outhit Waldorf 15-5 in the second set.  The Trojans recorded a hitting efficiency of .222 (7 errors in 36 attempts).  The Warriors were held to minus .033 hitting percentage. 

THIRD SET

The Trojans and Warriors battled back-and-forth in a see-saw third set.  Deadlocked at 17-17, DSU scored two straight points to grab a 19-17 lead.

WU answered by scoring the next four points to take a 21-19 lead, thanks to three straight attack errors by the Trojans.

The Warriors led at 24-20, but the Trojans saved three set points to cut WU's lead to 24-23.  Sarah Williams smashed a kill to give WU a 25-23 victory, extending the match into the fourth set with DSU holding on to a 2-1 match lead.

DSU outhit WU 16-11 in the third set.  However, the Trojans committed nine attack errors in 37 swings for a hitting percentage of .189.  The Warriors recorded a hitting efficiency of .188 (5 errors in 32 attempts).

FOURTH SET

Dakota State used a fast start in the fourth set, exploding to a 10-2 lead over Waldorf.  The Trojans never looked back as they dominated the Warriors with a 25-12 victory, securing the match in four sets.

DSU hit an impressive .500 in the fourth set with no attack errors.  The Trojans smashed 16 kills in 32 swings.  WU was held to .083 hitting percentage (8 kills with 5 errors in 36 attempts).

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

Three Dakota State players hit double-digit kills in the match, paced by Briceno with a double-double of 16 kills and 17 digs.  She hit .343 in the match.  Polzin added 16 kills and registered a hitting percentage of .353.  Spreier tallied 10 kills and hit .292.  Zell had eight kills.  Schwint recorded seven kills.

Rachel Johnson contributed 28 set assists for the Trojans.  Nicole Sarringar added 22 assists.

Alwaise Villa led DSU's defense with 28 digs.  Sperier registered three block assists.  Zell, Pearson and Polzin each had two block assists.  Johnson, Groft, Briceno and Naomi Larson each recorded a service ace.

Kyra Platzek led the Warriors' offense attack with 12 kills.  She had a double-double with 11 digs.  Savanna Cordie and Williams each added nine kills. 

Elisabeth produced a double-double of 31 assists and 12 digs for Waldorf. 

Adreanna Vetter had 24 digs for WU.  Platzek and Kelsey Sederquest each registered three service aces.  Cordie had three block assists.

Dakota State have 29 more kills than Waldorf in the match.  The Trojans outhit the Warriors 63-34.  DSU had a hitting percentage of .266 (22 errors in 154 swings) compared to WU .079 hitting percentage. 

The Trojans had a better service percentage than the Warriors.  DSU had a 94.8 service percentage rate with four aces and five errors in 97 serves.  WU registered a service percentage of 90.3 with six aces and seven errors in 72 attempts.

DSU had six blocks (1 solo, 10 assists), while WU had five blocks (10 assists).

UP NEXT

Dakota State closes out their regular-season schedule Saturday afternoon.  The Trojans host the North Star's conference leader No. 7 Viterbo (Wis.), who secured the No. 1 seed for the NSAA conference tournament after a 3-0 road victory at No. 25 Bellevue (Neb.) Friday.  First serve is slated for 1 p.m. at DSU Fieldhouse.  The Trojan volleyball team will be honoring their seniors prior to the match.

Waldorf concludes their season Saturday afternoon with the North Star conference action at Bellevue.  The match is set for 1 p.m. at Gordon Lozier Center.

Nick Huntimer, Dakota State University Sports Information Director