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All notes courtesy of SMSU athletics communications.
MARSHALL, Minn. - The No. 12 ranked Southwest Minnesota State volleyball team (15-3, 9-2 NSIC) rallied to earn a 3-2 victory over Northern State (13-6, 8-3 NSIC) on Saturday afternoon at the PE Gym, winning by set scores of 21-25, 25-19, 17-25, 25-22 and 15-13.
Leah Jones led the Mustangs offensively with a career-high 27 kills while hitting .375. Mollie Rupp added 11 kills and hit .292, while Ashley Peltier finished with 10 kills. Natalie Pilney contributed nine kills and led SMSU with eight total blocks.
Sydney Thein directed the Mustang offense with 28 assists, while Tatem Schmidt added 26 assists and 14 digs. Ashlynn Schroeder led the defensive effort with 25 digs, tying her career-high set earlier this season, while Mya Krystosek also reached double figures with 13 digs.
As a team, SMSU hit .215 (68-28-186), while adding seven service aces, 80 digs and 12 total blocks. Northern State, led by Katelyn Schroeder with 18 kills and 18 digs, finished the match hitting .190 (52-21-163), recording nine service aces, 77 digs and nine total blocks.
Northern State took the opening set 25-21 after building an early advantage and maintaining its lead through the closing points. The Mustangs stayed within reach late, with Jones contributing several kills, but the Wolves closed out the set to take a 1-0 lead.
SMSU responded in the second set, overcoming an early deficit before tying the score at 10-10. The Mustangs then took control, building their advantage with a strong stretch of offense and defense to move ahead 22-14. Northern State rallied late, but SMSU held on to win 25-19 and even the match at one set apiece.
The Wolves regained the lead in the third set, pulling away after the teams were tied at 9-9. Northern State built its advantage through the middle portion of the set and closed out a 25-17 victory to move within one set of the match.
Facing a must-win fourth set, the Mustangs battled back from a three-point deficit and tied the score at 14-14. SMSU continued to gain momentum, with Paige Steinmetz recording a service ace during a key stretch that helped the Mustangs build an 18-15 lead. The teams traded points late, but SMSU held on to win 25-22 and force a deciding fifth set.
The fifth set featured another close battle, with the teams trading points early before Northern State held an 11-8 advantage. SMSU responded with a late rally to even the score at 13-13 before closing out the match with the final two points to secure the 15-13 victory.
The Mustangs close out a four-match home stretch next weekend, facing Minnesota Crookston on Oct. 16, at 6 p.m., while facing Minnesota State Moorhead the next day at 2 p.m.