SIOUX FALLS – Behind several career performances, University of Sioux Falls Volleyball toppled No. 9 Augustana in five sets, winning 3-2 (27-25, 22-25, 25-27, 25-22, 16-14) on Saturday evening. The Cougars improve to 6-1 on the season and even their Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference record to 1-1 while the Vikings drop to 8-3 on the year with a 0-2 mark in NSIC play.
 
The two-hour 21-minute match was tight in each set with three of the five frames needing extra points to be decided and all five sets hacing a margin of three points or less. Junior outside hitter Makenna Rockeman took the lion's share of the Cougar attacks, connecting on a career-high 27 kills on 63 total attempts. Junior right-side hitter Bria Barfnecht wrapped up her efficient week with 13 kills and just two hitting errors while junior setter Megan Hamstad set another career mark with 58 assists to lead the Cougars to a .233 attack percentage.
 
The Cougar defense that held Augustana to a .188 attack percentage was headed by four different Cougars with double-digit digs. Barfnecht continues her defensive renaissance with another career-high, leading both teams with 21 digs for a double-double. Libero Janelle Lam posted her third 20-dig match of the season with 20 on Saturday. Anna Peterson's serving was big for the Cougars and her back-row defense led to 11 digs, her first career double-digit dig performance. Rockeman posted another double-double adding 10 pickups on defense.
 
USF's victory evened the Division II series with Augustana to 3-3, with each Sioux Falls victory coming in five sets. The upset win was USF's second victory over a top-10 team in as many years – the Cougars defeated then No. 1 Minnesota Duluth in five sets on the road last season – and it is their fourth win over a top-25 ranked opponent over the last two seasons.
 
Starting the match with a tight first set, neither USF nor Augustana was able to build a lead larger than three points. The Cougars held a slight lead for the majority of the first frame and Rockeman paced USF's offense with seven kills in the opening set. USF tied the set at 23-23 with a Rockeman kill then shook off Augustana's first set point from an attack error. USF earned their first set-point opportunity after a Barfnecht kill, but AU extended the game again. Rockeman brought USF to their set advantage with another kill and an attack error wrapped it up for USF, 27-25, to win the first set.
 
USF looked to be in control of the second set and Rockeman was again the bell cow for the offense with eight more terminations in the second frame. The Cougars pushed ahead 19-13 before a 5-1 run by theVikings cut their lead to two. USF forced Augustana into their second timeout after Barfnecht and Rockeman put down a pair of kills. However, that was the last points USF scored in the second set as Augustana scored seven straight to even the match with a 25-22 set victory.
 
A mid-set run by Augustana gave the visiting team a three-point cushion, but the Cougars didn't go down easy. Abby Feyereisen connected on two of her six total kills to help USF pull within one point at 19-18. The Cougars shook off two Augustana set points to earn one of their own after a pair of Rockeman kills. The Vikings then seized any momentum the Cougars had with three straight points, stealing the third set, 27-25.
 
After a heart-breaking third-set loss, USF found themselves down 12-6 before beginning a furious comeback. Rockeman connected on three kills as USF trimmed their deficit to two points. USF kept rolling behind Rockeman, who tacked on four more kills to give the Cougars five set-point opportunities. Augustana fought off three of USF's set-closing opportunities before a ball-handling error by the AU setter, gave the Cougars a 25-22 victory and forced a fifth set.
 
Riding their comeback victory in the fourth set, USF built a four-point advantage led by pair of Averey Yaksich kills, holding an 8-4 lead at the court change. The Cougars were able to limit any prolonged Augustana runs and earned their first match-point chance after a Barfnecht kill. Two kills eraed USF's advantage but an attack error gave the Cougars their third opportunity to secure the upset victory. Scott and Yaksich seized that chance when they teamed up for another block, sealing the victory with a 16-14 fourth-set win.
 
The Cougars continue their run of matches against top-25 teams when they host No. 1 Southwest Minnesota State on Tuesday, Sept. 19 at 6 p.m. at the Stewart Center.