SIOUX FALLS, S.D. - The University of Sioux Falls' volleyball team saw its winning streak come to a close when Minot State needed five sets to beat the Cougars 3-2 on Saturday afternoon. The five-set (25-18, 24-26, 25-22, 18-25, 15-11) defeat drops USF to 8-9 overall with a 3-5 record against Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference teams.
Abby Folk led a Cougar defense that kept USF in a tight match with a career- and match-high 27 digs, extending her double-digit dig streak to seven straight matches. Emily Johnson posted a team-high 16 kills on 60 attempts, nearly a third of all USF swings, and the Cougars hit .169 for the afternoon with 54 kills.
Minot State snapped a six-match losing skid with Saturday's victory, tallying 69 kills on offense. The Beaver defense weighed heavily on the outcome as they picked up 93 digs, forcing Sioux Falls into 23 errors and just 10.8 kills per set.
The Beavers looked poised for a quick victory after taking the first set 25-18, but the Cougars wouldn't go away easily. After racing out to an 8-1 lead, Minot State would counter and even take a lead at 15-14 in in the second set. Back and forth went the latter half of the second stanza, but it was one of Jordan Calef's 10 kills that would even the match with a 26-24 set win.
After a four-point run in the third set, Minot State built a lead they wouldn't relinquish, putting the pressure back on the Cougars with a 25-22 third-set victory. Down 10-8, Kate Hart led a USF surge by serving the Cougars to eight straight points, aided by six MISU errors and, a lead that would hold for a 25-18 fourth set win.
The Cougar comeback seemed to be halted early in the fifth set after they fell behind 5-0 from Jen Dixon and Mallory Sall kills. Dixon and Sall combined for 41 terminations in the match and Dixon posted 25 digs, second only to teammate Cindy Pelo's 26. The Cougars started to claw back behind kills from Johnson and Samantha Lovell, but the Cougars wouldn't get closer than 13-11 and fell 15-11 in the final set.
USF closes their six-match home stand with a home contest against Mount Marty on Tuesday, Oct. 7 in the Stewart Center.
