PENSACOLA, Fla. – The No. 11 ranked Southwest Minnesota State volleyball team opened the 2024 season on Friday with a 3-0 victory over Spring Hill College (Ala.) in the opening day of the West Florida Invitational. The Mustangs won by scores of 25-16, 27-25 and 25-17.
 
The victory avenges a 3-1 loss suffered to Spring Hill in the opening day last season in the same tournament. SHC finished 30-5 last season and advanced to the NCAA tournament.
 
Saari Kuehl led the Mustangs with 18 kills, while hitting .429. Ashley Peltier hit .500 with eight kills, while Emma VanHeel added seven kills with a .545 hitting percentage.
 
Sydney Thein, playing in her first collegiate match, recorded a double-double dishing out 38 assists with 12 digs. McKenzie Tolk led the Mustangs with 18 digs.
 
SMSU closed the match hitting .296 (48-14-115), while SHC hit .081 (34-24-124). The Badgers, which drop to 0-2 on the season, were led by Brooklyn Hall's 11 kills on 25 attacks.
 
The Mustangs never trailed in set one building an 18-7 lead before winning 25-16. Kuehl led the way with six kills on 13 attacks in the set.
 
SMSU was in control for much of set two, including building a 24-19 lead, but SHC battled back to take a 25-24 lead behind three service aces. Kuehl stopped the six-point run with a kill and was followed by a kill from Karli Arkell before a hitting error by SHC gave SMSU the 27-25 victory.
 
With the score tied at 4-4 in set three, Leah Jones started a 5-0 run with a kill to give the Mustangs a 9-4 lead and never looked back in securing the sweep. SMSU hit .405 in set three with Kuehl adding seven hits, while VanHeel added five kills.
 
SMSU will face No. 20 West Florida (1-0) later tonight with match time set for 7 p.m.