Bolivar, Mo. – The No. 13-ranked Southwest Minnesota State volleyball team (8-0) closed out the Drury/Southwest Baptist Classic with a 25-15, 25-15, 25-20 victory against Southern Arkansas (0-7) and a 25-21, 25-20, 25-16 win over Rockhurst (6-1) on Saturday on the campus of Southwest Baptist University.
With the win over Southern Arkansas,
Tyler Boddy became the first coach in program history to begin his career 7-0.
Emma VanHeel had 12 kills in game one to lead the offense, while
Saari Kuehl picked up 11 kills.
Karli Symonsbergen saw her first extended action of her Mustang career, leading the way with 18 assists. The defense was anchored by
Rachel Fink's 13 digs and VanHeel's 3 blocks.
SAU jumped to a 3-0 lead opening set one, but the Mustangs cranked up the heat almost immediately. Four straight points put SMSU in front, and after a pair of points from the Muleriders, The Mustangs scored three more and take a 7-5 lead. Following an SAU point, SMSU cranked it back up, scoring 11 straight points, led by three kills and a block from VanHeel, to put SMSU in front 18-6.
The Muleriders charged right back, scoring nine of 11 points to cut the Mustang lead to 20-15. SMSU closed the set out, scoring five straight points, including a pair of service aces from Fink, to take a 1-0 lead.
The Mustangs kept their momentum rolling into the second set, scoring the first seven points for an early lead. SAU answered with three straight points to cut the score to 7-3, but three straight SMSU points were the response to build their lead back up to 10-3. SAU came back to trail 15-10, but a 7-1 run pushed the Mustang lead to 22-11. Four of the next five points went in favor of the Muleriders, but a pair of kills by the Mustangs ended set two and give SMSU a 2-0 lead.
The third set would be a back-and-forth affair to begin, with each team splitting 26 points to bring the set to a 13-13 tie. The Mustangs pulled away after that point, scoring 8 of 10 points and jumping ahead 21-15. SAU came back with three straight points, but it wouldn't be enough to stop the Mustangs from a sweep.
In game two, the Mustangs opened it up with a carry of momentum from game one. After losing the first two points, SMSU trotted in front with seven straight points to force a Rockhurst timeout. The Hawks clawed within 8-5, but a 7-1 Mustang run created more separation, putting SMSU up 15-6. RU wouldn't go away, scrapping to within three at 17-14, but the early runs were enough to hold off the Hawks, as the Mustangs outscored RU 8-7 the rest of the way to win set one.
The Mustangs pulled away from set two after trailing 10-9, scoring six straight points to take a 15-10 lead. RU pulled within two at 19-17, but SMSU scored six of the final nine points to finish off the set.
After a 10-10 start to set three, the Mustangs decided they were ready to go home. Seven of nine points would go in favor of SMSU, and after two points from RU, the Mustangs scored eight of 10 points to wrap up their non-conference schedule with another sweep.
Karli Arkell led offensively, recording 11 kills on a .500 hitting percentage, while Kuehl finished with 10 kills.
Alisa Bengen got it done on both ends, leading the defense with 13 digs and collected 33 assists to aid the offense. VanHeel led the front line with four blocks, while Arkell added three.
SMSU opens their conference schedule at home next weekend, hosting Winona State and Upper Iowa. The Mustangs will take on the Warriors at 6 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 9, before facing Upper Iowa at 2 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 10
