October 3, 2026
GREAT FALLS, Mont. — Dakota State (S.D.) opened Saturday afternoon's Frontier Conference contest with a first-set victory, but No. 8 Providence (Mont.) responded by winning the next three sets for a 3-1 victory at McLaughlin Center Gymnasium.
The Trojans fell to 9-8 overall and 6-5 in Frontier play. The Argos improved to 13-5 overall and 7-4 in the conference.
Dakota State won the opening set 25-23 before Providence answered with victories of 25-15, 25-21 and 25-20.
How it happened
DSU raced to a 3-0 lead to begin the match, sparked by kills from
Emily Nelson and
Lauryn Kloth followed by Nelson's service ace. The Trojans maintained their advantage and built an 18-14 lead after consecutive Providence attacking errors.
The Argos rallied and eventually tied the set at 23-23.
Kaedyn Sapp broke the tie with a kill before
Kaylee Evenson closed the set with another kill, giving Dakota State a 25-23 victory.
The Trojans produced their best offensive set of the match, smashing 18 kills with just four errors on 40 swings for a .350 hitting percentage. Providence hit .256 with 15 kills.
Providence scored the first four points of the second set and never trailed. Dakota State trimmed the deficit to 10-8, but the Argos gradually pulled away.
Providence used an 8-4 run to extend a 13-9 lead to 21-12. The Argos finished the set with a 25-15 victory to even the match at one set apiece.
Dakota State was held to a negative .047 hitting percentage in the second set, recording 10 kills against 12 attack errors. Providence had eight kills and two errors for a .182 hitting percentage.
The third set featured five ties as the two teams battled through the early stages. Dakota State grabbed an 8-5 advantage following a service ace from
Reagan VanRooyan before Providence answered.
The Argos pulled away after holding a slim 15-14 lead with five consecutive points for a 20-14 advantage. DSU refused to go quietly, using a late 7-3 surge to pull within 23-21. Providence stopped the rally with the final two points to take the set 25-21 and a 2-1 match lead.
Dakota State came out quickly in the fourth set, scoring the first four points and extending its lead to 7-1. The Trojans maintained a 13-7 advantage and later led 18-13.
Providence responded with four straight points to trim DSU's lead to 18-17. The Trojans went back in front 20-18, but the Argos closed the match with seven unanswered points. Providence tied the set at 20-20 and scored the final five points to complete the 25-20 victory.
Inside the box score
Dakota State finished with 53 kills and 29 attack errors on 163 attempts for a .147 hitting percentage. Providence recorded 50 kills and 19 errors on 148 attempts, hitting .209 for the match.
The Argos held advantages in service aces (7-5), digs (73-65) and total blocks (10-7). Dakota State finished with 51 assists.
Sapp paced the Trojan offense with 12 kills and added six digs.
Macey Wathen collected nine kills with just one error in 20 swings for a team-best .400 hitting percentage. Evenson added eight kills and four block assists.
Kloth contributed six kills and seven block assists, while
Rylee Thompson finished with five kills and three block assists.
Annika Cantrell also had five kills.
Nelson recorded 23 assists, six digs, three kills and a service ace.
Gabi Borresen added 21 assists, 10 digs and a service ace.
Kate VanRooyan led Dakota State's back row with 17 digs and added a service ace. She surpassed her 2,000
th career dig at Dakota State.
Reagan VanRooyan collected 11 digs, while
Sydney Wathen finished with nine digs.
Providence had four players reach double figures in kills. Bree MacDonald and Martyna Fiedler each registered 11 kills, Kendall Picolet added 10 kills and Karolina Karabasz had 10.
Picolet hit .333 for the match, while Fiedler posted a .300 hitting percentage. Cabry Badley contributed seven kills and six total blocks.
Marli Lopeman led the Argos with 22 assists and added nine digs, while Araleigh Arnold recorded 17 assists, seven digs and three service aces. Kyra Saiers led Providence defensively with a match-high 20 digs. MacDonald added 14 digs, and Heather Barbee collected 12 digs.
Up next
Dakota State stays on the road next weekend as they begin their second half portion of the Frontier Conference schedule. The Trojans visit Bismarck State (N.D.) Friday at 7 p.m., playing at the newly arena Bavendick Center in Bismarck.
