SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – The South Dakota State volleyball team is 10-0 for the first time since 2000 following a five-set victory over Toledo Friday night at the Sanford Pentagon.
The Jacks won the first two sets, then Toledo took sets three and four, setting up a five-set thriller on day two of the Jackrabbit Invitational. Down 8-5 at the set-five side change, SDSU rallied to win 15-13.
Set scores went 25-22, 25-17, 19-25, 29-31, 15-13.
SDSU set a new program record with 19 blocks in the match, led by 10 from Madison Burr (matching her own program record) and nine from Sydni Schetnan. Alyssa Groves contributed six digs, matching her career high, and Annalee Ventling-Brown took part in five blocks.
Schetnan and Burr were also big contributors on the offensive end. Schetnan had 12 kills at a .435 clip and Burr added 10 kills while hitting .409. posted
Sylvie Zgonc paced the Jacks with 17 kills on the night to go with eight digs. Alia Schlimgen had a team-high 13 digs and fellow libero Joslyn Richardson had 12. Rachel Wieber added 11.
Rylee Martin dished 26 assists, followed by Camryn Honn’s 14 assists to go with 11 digs and three aces.
Taylor Alt put down a match-high 21 kills and contributed 18 digs for Toledo.
Set one: Consecutive Toledo errors in the opening set made it 9-5 for the Jackrabbits, forcing a timeout by the Rockets. Out of the break, Toledo went on a 6-2 stretch to set the set at 11-all, this time causing an SDSU timeout. Tied again at 16, Wieber served up an ace and Ventling-Brown got in on two blocks during a 4-0 run. Zgonc and Venting-Brown notched a kill apiece to lead 21-17. Toledo worked back within one at 23-22, then a Rocket serving error and a Burr kill won set one for SDSU.
Set two: The Jacks jumped out to an 8-1 lead behind three kills and a block assist from Zgonc. Toledo started to chip away at the deficit and was back within four at 12-9. A kill and an ace by Burr pushed the Jacks back up by five, 14-9. Toledo made another push to tie the set at 16-all before SDSU ended the set on a 9-1 run.
Set three: The third featured 11 ties up to the halfway point at 12-12, then Toledo put together a 5-1 run. The Jacks got two points back on Schetnan and Burr kills that made it 17-15. Two Toledo errors kept the Jacks within two at 19-17, then Toledo ended with six of the final eight points.
Set four: It seemed Toledo would run away with the fourth set after opening up an 18-9 lead on the Jacks, but SDSU battled all the way back. Schetnan and Groves had kills that got two points back at 18-11. Down 20-12, five Toledo errors and an ace from Honn forced a Rocket timeout at 21-17. Burr took part in four blocks during a 4-1 run that had the Jackrabbits within one, 21-20. The sides traded points, then a pair of Schetnan kills gave the Jackrabbits the 23-22 lead. Neither team could pull away for the win until the eventual 31-29 Toledo victory to force the deciding set five.
Set five: Groves opened set five with a kill, then Toledo scored the next three. The teams went back-and-forth and Toledo led 8-5 at the side change. After the media timeout at the break, Zgonc tallied two kills and Toledo had two errors that pushed the Jacks ahead, 9-8. With the set tied at 12, Schetnan and Ventling-Brown teamed up on a block and Zgonc put down an ace to lead 14-12. Ventling-Brown and Schetnan again teamed up on a block for the final point of the night.
NOTES
- South Dakota State is 10-0 for the first time since 2000. The last time the Jackrabbits won 10 straight at any point in a season was 2004.
- The Jackrabbits’ 19 blocks is a program record, topping the previous record that the 2024 team set against UIC earlier this season.
UP NEXT
The Jackrabbits wrap the non-conference season against Belmont at 1 p.m. Saturday at the Sanford Pentagon.