BOX SCORE

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – On Tuesday night in Sioux Falls, the Southwest Minnesota State volleyball team recorded its 800th all-time win in school history as the No. 2 ranked Mustangs knocked off the Augustana Vikings in straight sets with wins of 27-25, 25-16, 31-29. SMSU improved to 12-1 overall, while Augustana dropped to 9-5 overall.

SMSU was led by Mary Groth as she recorded 13 kills, while Abbey Thissen followed with 11. In the third and final set, Groth recorded her 1400th career kill to pass Megan Wendorff for fourth all-time. 

In the first set, the Vikings took it to the No. 2 ranked Mustangs as it was a back-and-forth set. The Mustangs were sloppy with 10 errors and only a .128 hitting percentage. Augustana wasn't much better as the Vikings had seven errors and a .116 hitting percentage. SMSU would trail for the majority of the match rallied to come back from a 23-20 deficit to take the set 27-25.

SMSU kicked off the rust in the second set and shut down the Viking offense as SMSU used 10 block assists to hold the Augustana  offense to a -.022 hitting percentage. Abbey Thissen slammed four kills while Mary Groth and Emilee Gutzmer assisted on three blocks.

Despite a 9-1 run to turn a 3-7 deficit into a 12-8 lead in the third set, the Vikings could not hold the lead as the Mustangs would rally back to take an 18-15 lead. The rest of the set was an exciting back-and-forth set in which the Vikings would fend off four match points. SMSU would eventually take the match with a 31-29 set victory.

Brooke Burmeister led with 14 digs while Emilee Gutzmer tallied 40 assists. The Mustangs combined to hit .165 with 26 errors.  Augustana's Holly Hafemeyer had a match-high 17 kills.

This Friday and Saturday, SMSU will travel to take on Northern State and MSU Moorhead in two NSIC matches. Friday's match is set for 7 p.m. while Saturday's is set for 3 p.m.