SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – South Dakota State improved to 9-0 on the season Thursday night with a 3-0 sweep (25-19, 25-19, 25-18) over Idaho State at the Sanford Pentagon.
With nine consecutive victories to start the year, SDSU is off to its best start to the season since starting 9-0 in 2002.
The Jackrabbits hit .267 for the match and were blocked just six times by the No. 1 blocking team in the country in Idaho State. Annalee Ventling-Brown was the most efficient attacker on the floor, notching seven kills and one error on 10 swings for a .600 clip. Sydni Schetnan was just behind her with 10 kills on 18 errorless swings for a .556 hit percentage.
Sylvie Zgonc posted an 11-kill, 12-dig double-double, her sixth of the season. Alyssa Groves and Madison Burr had six kills apiece.
Rylee Martin also recored a double-double with 18 assists and 10 digs. Camryn Honn added 15 assists and six digs.
The Jacks had five total blocks as a team, paced by three block assists from Burr and one solo block and two block assists from Ventling-Brown.
Idaho State got nine kills each from Marci Bell and Sadie Bluth.
Set one: Down 7-4 in the opening set, SDSU put together a 7-1 run to take the lead at 11-8. Katie Van Egdom put down back-to-back kills to spark the run. Ventling-Brown and Burr teamed up on a block and had one kill each. Another kill from Ventling-Brown made it 15-12. The Jacks held off the Bengals until pulling away with four straight points to win 25-19.
Set two: Idaho State took a 4-1 lead but the Jacks never let the Bengals pull away. Finally at 13-11, in ISU’s favor, Ventling-Brown notched a kill and Rachel Wieber had an ace to tie the set at 13-all. Schetnan had two kills during a three-point stretch for the lead at 18-16. Alyssa Groves recorded a kill and Van Egdom a solo block during a five-point run to lead 23-17. A block by Burr and Martin put the Jacks up 2-0 for the match.
Set three: The Jacks jumped out to a 10-5 lead behind kills from four different players and an ace by Honn. Zgonc and Venting-Brown tallied two kills each and Wieber put down another ace during a 5-1 stretch that made it 15-7. Idaho State worked back to within three at 19-16 before the Jacks pulled away with a 6-2 finish to the match.
NOTES
South Dakota State is 9-0 on the year. Should the Jackrabbits win Friday, their 10-0 record would be the longest unbeaten start to a season since starting 14-0 in 2000.
UP NEXT
South Dakota State takes on Toledo at 7 p.m. Friday at the Sanford Pentagon.