UNC takes Coyotes to five in USD Classic

Saturday, September 10

Sioux Falls, S.D. (Pentagon)

5 p.m. MT

University of Northern Colorado

4-4,0-0Big Sky

University of South Dakota

8-1,0-0Summit League

Northern Colo.

South Dakota

Photo by: Jam David

9/10/2022 10:07:00 PM | Women's Volleyball

Box Score

By: By Jason Dormeyer

SIOUX FALLS, S.D.—Looking to snap South Dakota's seven-match winning streak, Northern Colorado pushed the host Coyotes until the end before falling 3-2 (25-21, 14-25, 23-25, 25-19, 15-11) on Saturday night in the final contest of the USD Classic.

With the result, Northern Colorado ends the week with a 4-4 overall record while South Dakota improved to 8-1 on the season with its eighth straight win.

After letting the opening set go in the waning moments, UNC dominated action in the second set to knot the match at 1-all. The Bears hit a sizzling .586 in the set as the team recorded 17 kills and zero attacking errors.

The momentum did not carry over to the third set, however, as the Coyotes jumped out to an 8-1 spread. Not deterred, the Bears chipped away at the deficit and eventually surpassed the home side at 17-16 following a USD attack error. The teams traded shots until Syd Cole used a crafty set dump for a 21-20 lead. Rachel Hickman followed with two kills of her own to close out the win and snare a 2-1 advantage.

The UNC offense was held in check in the fourth while South Dakota limited their mistakes in the fifth to claim the match. The match represented the third five-set contest for the Bears in the last seven days.

Kailey Jo Ince led all players with 24 kills and was followed by 19 from Makenzie Harris and 16 from Hickman. Cole ended her night with a season-best 56 assists and tied a season high with 15 digs.

Following the contest, Cole and Ince were selected to the South Dakota Classic All-Tournament team.

BACK IN THE BANK
UNC volleyball returns to Bank of Colorado Arena for a three-match swing September 15-17 when the Bears host Tarleton State, Cal Poly and Santa Clara. All three matches are 6 p.m. first serves and tickets are available via the UNC Athletics app, online at UNCBears.com/tickets or by calling (970) 351-4849 or visiting the Ticket Office in Campus Commons from 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday through Friday.