TUCSON, Ariz. – South Dakota swept Cal State Northridge and Florida A&M in straight sets on Saturday at the McKale Center. The Coyotes (2-4) finished runner-up with a 2-1 record at the Arizona Invitational.
 
Senior outside hitter Sydney Dimke and sophomore setter Brittany Jessen were selected to the all-tournament team. Dimke had 38 kills and 17 digs during the tournament, while Jessen recorded 84 assists.
 
The Coyotes took down Cal State Northridge (1-4) 25-20, 25-20, 25-15 to open the day. Dimke led South Dakota with 16 kills and an attack percentage of .560. Jessen notched a match-high 34 assists. Junior Lindsey Brown added six kills with an attack percentage of .750.
 
"The first win always feels good," said South Dakota head coach Leanne Williamson. "It shows that we have learned from some of our losses against really good competition."
 
South Dakota jumped out to a 10-2 lead in the first set behind two kills apiece from Dimke and Brown. The Coyotes finished off set one at 25-20.
 
A total of 11 lead changes occurred in the second set as neither team led by more than six points. The score was 18-17 in favor of the Coyotes before South Dakota went on a 7-3 run to win the set.
 
After a 10-7 lead at the beginning of the third set, South Dakota outscored Cal State Northridge 15-8 to take the third set. Dimke and junior Audrey Reeg had back-to-back kills at the end of the set to finish the sweep.
 
"Our players pushed throughout the match and our hitting percentage shows how powerful we can be," said Williamson. "Sydney had a fantastic match offensively and the team matched her intensity and determination. Our middles did a great job following the game plan, which put them in great situations to get blocks."
 
South Dakota went on to sweep Florida A&M (0-6) in the second match 25-7, 25-17, 25-22. Dimke led the Coyotes with 12 kills, while Reeg added nine more. Senior Kelsey Biltoft, Brown, and freshman Hayley Dotseth each had six apiece. Jessen recorded a match-high 30 assists. The Coyotes recorded a team hitting percentage of .368.
 
The Yotes came out firing with a 15-4 lead and nine kills in set one. Another 10-2 run finished off the Rattlers. South Dakota notched a .609 hitting percentage with six Coyotes recording two kills.
 
"Set one was a great push from the team and a dominant offensive performance," Williamson commented.
 
In the second set, the score was tied up on six occasions until the Coyotes went on a 10-4 run to pull away. South Dakota took the second set 25-17.
 
The Rattlers pushed the Coyotes to the brink in set three with a total of 13 lead changes. Three consecutive kills by Dimke pulled the Coyotes into the lead at the 19th point. A kill by Reeg and an ace by Brown finished off the set to sweep the Rattlers.
 
"It's great to come out of this tournament with two wins," said Williamson. "This will help build momentum going into our next competition in North Dakota."