Oct. 20, 2012

Fort Wayne-USD Box Score

FORT WAYNE, Ind. - Despite coming back from being two sets down, South Dakota volleyball lost to Fort Wayne 3-2 (25-13, 25-23, 22-25, 16-25, 15-12) on Saturday night.

The loss drops USD to 9-14 overall and 3-8 in the Summit League.  However, the Coyotes had strong defensive production to put pressure on conference-leading Fort Wayne (20-4, 9-2).

Kendall Kritenbrink (Gretna, Neb.) had 25 kills in the match, which is her third-highest mark this season.  Kim Bulaga (Crystal Lake, Ill.) had nine kills and Tori Kroll (Germantown, Wis.) had 41 assists to add to the offense.

The defense was very active with five recording at least 14 digs.  Riley Haug (Gretna, Neb.) had 18 to lead the Coyotes, and Kritenbrink dug out 16 balls.  Bulaga, Kroll and Katie Bunkers (Columbus, Neb.) all had 14 digs. 

Natalie Walseth (Inver Grove Heights, Minn.) and Kelsey Biltoft (Nelson, Neb.) were aggressive at turning away attacks at the net.  Walseth had seven block assists, while Biltoft recorded two solo blocks and four assists.  Sydney Dimke (Ham Lake, Minn.) also made a presence with five blocks.

Four Mastodons had at least 10 kills with Emily Spencer recording 19 to lead the way. Tessa McGill recorded 30 digs to lead Fort Wayne's defense.

South Dakota will have a quick turnaround as they host Omaha on Monday at 7 p.m.