The Basics
Score: No. 3 South Dakota 3, No. 1 South Dakota State 2
Records: South Dakota (21-9, 10-6 SL), South Dakota State (27-2, 15-1 SL)
Location: Swinney Center – Kansas City, Mo.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – No. 3 South Dakota corralled the program's fifth Summit League Volleyball Championship title in the past seven years, taking down No. 1 South Dakota State in five sets (20-25, 25-18, 25-19, 16-25, 15-10) Tuesday at the Swinney Center. The Coyotes, who won sets two, three and five, also became the first quarterfinalist to win the trophy since the field expanded to six teams in 2013.

South Dakota had four players in double-figure kills led by Championship MVP Kylen Sealock, who totaled a career-high 23 in a match that saw plenty of highs and lows for both sides. Sealock's 23rd kill closed out the five-set thriller as the Coyotes avenged a pair of regular-season losses to their in-state rivals, who fell for just the second time all season.

In the opening set, SDSU trailed 15-13 but ran off four straight points with Freshman of the Year Madison Burr capping that run with back-to-back kills. That would be the fifth and final lead change of the opener.

Neither team led by more than two in that opening set until Sydni Schetnan delivered the team's sixth block to put the Jacks ahead 21-18. From there, the Jackrabbits cruised to a five-point set victory. Schetnan had a solo block and four block assists to help limit the Coyotes to a .102 hitting percentage.

Lauren Medeck had four kills and 10 digs in the first set to pace the Coyotes on both sides of the ball.

In the second set, it was back-and-forth early before USD posted a 5-0 run to take an 11-7 lead, which was the Coyotes' largest through the opening two stanzas. 

The Jackrabbits did not let USD pull away, however, as they clawed back to within a point at 16-15. From there, it was all Cheyenne Hlady and Amanda Loschen for the Coyotes. Those two combined for six kills in a 9-3 set-closing run.  

Hlady had 10 kills on 14 swings through the opening two sets to pace USD's offense. She finished with a season-high 18.

The third set was a tight one until midway through when South Dakota reeled off six straight points to build a 17-10 advantage. Sealock had three kills during that spurt to give the Coyotes control. It got a little shaky towards the end of the set but after the Jacks pulled within two at 21-19, USD scored the final four points on a block, two services aces from Medeck and a set-closing kill from Hlady. 

Sealock finished with seven kills in the set to match her total from the first two.

SDSU regrouped to open the fourth set, racing out to a 12-3 lead as Joslyn Richardson started things with back-to-back kills. Richardson had only two kills in the first three sets but racked up four in the pivotal fourth that saw the Jacks force a decisive fifth set.

After trailing 3-1 early in the fifth set, the Coyotes used a 6-0 run to cease the momentum. After the Jackrabbits scored back-to-back points to make it 14-10, Sealock closed out the trophy hunt as four Coyotes finished with double-digit kills.

Who Stood Out
Sealock had twice registered 21 kills during her four-year career with the Coyotes but was able to exceed that total to keep her senior season alive. She finished with 23 and hit .286 for that match.

Medeck registered her 13th double-double of the season, finishing with 13 points and 19 digs, while Avery Van Hook and Defensive Player of the Year Kamryn Farris also recorded double-doubles for the Coyotes. Van Hook had 54 assists and 13 digs, while Farris had 13 assists and 30 digs.

Hlady also set a season-high in kills with 18 and hit a team-high .350.

Player of the Year Sylvie Zgonc led the Jackrabbits with 19 kills and Rylee Martin registered a double-double for the Jacks with 22 assists and 14 digs. Schetnan finished with nine kills and nine blocks.

Turning Point
A 6-0 run early in the fifth set lifted the Coyotes into an insurmountable lead as they knocked off the top-seeded Jackrabbits with a 15-10 victory in that decisive stanza.
 
Notable

• South Dakota has now won the postseason tournament in five of the last seven seasons, including three straight from 2020-22.
• After registering 7.0 blocks in the 25-20 opening-set win, SDSU did not record one in a 25-18 set two loss.
• This was just the second meeting between South Dakota and South Dakota State in the Summit League Volleyball Championship. The prior meeting was in the 2021 semifinals when the second-seeded Coyotes beat the sixth-seeded Jackrabbits in five sets.
• South Dakota State won both regular season matchups with the Coyotes, including a victory on the final day that clinched the program's second outright regular season title. 
• This is the first non-basketball meeting between SDSU and South Dakota in a Summit League Women's Tournament final. The Jackrabbits and Coyotes have met seven times on the hardwood with SDSU winning five of those.
• The Coyotes, who entered the postseason with three consecutive losses, became the first quarterfinalist in league history to win three straight matches to claim the title since the field expanded to six in 2013. 
• This is the second time USD has won the tournament as the No. 3 seed. The only other team from that line to hoist the trophy was Purdue-Fort Wayne in 2009.

All-Tournament Team
Ali Hinze, North Dakota State
Sydney Henry, Kansas City
Molly Mirabelli, Denver
McKenna Ruch, Omaha
Alyssa Groves, South Dakota State
Syndi Schetnan, South Dakota State
Kylen Sealock South Dakota (MVP)
Kamryn Farris, South Dakota
Avery Van Hook, South Dakota

Up Next
The winner earns the Summit League's automatic qualifying bid to the NCAA Women's Volleyball Tournament. The NCAA Selection Show will be televised Sunday at 5 p.m. CT on ESPN.

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