WAYNE, Neb. – The No. 15 ranked Southwest Minnesota State Mustangs volleyball team was defeated Saturday afternoon by the No. 7 ranked Wayne State Wildcats (17-3, 10-1 NSIC) in four sets, 18-25, 25-23, 26-28, 21-25.
Leah Jones led the Mustangs in kills with 16 in the match, hitting .289, with seven digs.
Natalie Pilney had 14 kills, hit .417, and had four total blocks.
Ashley Peltier had 13 kills, and
Karli Arkell added 11 kills.
McKenzie Tolk led the team in digs with 27, and
Sydney Thein had a double double of 56 assists and 10 digs.
The Mustangs as a team hit .224 (64-23-183) while the Wildcats, who were led in kills by Channatee Robles with 24, hit .241 (64-18-191).
Wayne State maintained control for the majority of the first set and were helped by a 7-1 run late in the set, with three kills from Delaney Miller. The Mustangs in the first set hit .143, and the Wildcats took the first set 15-18.
After an even start to the second set SMSU took control, going on an 8-1 run with two kills each from
Leah Jones and
Natalie Pilney. The Mustangs hit .216 in the second set and were helped with three aces, including back-to-back aces from Pilney, and won the second set 25-23.
The Wildcats took an early 7-2 lead in the third set, but the Mustangs kept themselves in the set, in part by out-hitting Wayne State .280 to .236. SMSU went on a 9-4 run late in the set led by
Leah Jones with three kills and eventually led the third set 25-24. However, a 4-1 turn in the final moments of the set gave the third to Wayne State 28-26.
The fourth set was back and forth and was tied 15-15, before a Wayne State 8-3 run gave an edge to the Wildcats. Despite a late rally by the Mustangs, the Wildcats held on and won the fourth set 25-21.
SMSU is back home on Tuesday, Oct. 21, at 6 p.m. against Sioux Falls in the PE Gym. Next weekend the Mustangs will travel north to face Minnesota Crookston on Friday, Oct. 24, and Minnesota State Moorhead on Saturday, Oct. 25. All three matches will be streaming live on the NSIC Network. Tickets for Tuesday's match and more information can be found at smsumustangs.com/sports/womens-volleyball.
