VERMILLION, S.D.—Denver senior outside hitter Kayla Principato notched a match-high 19 kills while fellow senior Cassie Bair added 15 kills and 19 digs to lead the Pioneers to a 3-2 win against South Dakota Friday at the Sanford Coyote Sports Center. Scores went 15-25, 25-20, 19-25, 25-20, 15-11.
 
The win gives Denver (20-5, 11-2 Summit) at least a share of the Summit League title. The Pioneers will be the No. 1 seed when they host the Summit League Tournament which begins Friday. South Dakota (16-10, 10-4) lost for just the third time in two seasons at its new home venue. The Coyotes will be the No. 3 seed in the tournament and will take on either Fort Wayne or Western Illinois in a first-round match next Friday at 7 p.m. (CT).
 
Hayley Dotseth and Elizabeth Loschen had 16 and 10 kills, respectively, to lead South Dakota, but the Coyotes hit just .105 on the night and mustered five kills against five errors in the final set.
 
Who Stood Out
For South Dakota, it was the defenders led by sophomore libero Anne Rasmussen who finished with 41 digs, second-most in program history. She added six assists and had two of the Coyotes' eight service aces. Junior Kristina Susak had 21 digs, five kills and three block assists. Senior setter Brittany Jessen finished three kills shy of a triple double. She had 36 assists and 15 digs to go with seven kills.
 
Baird hit .239 (15-4-46) to lead Denver. She also had three aces and six block assists. Both Pioneer setters were effective. Piyusha Boteju had 23 assists and a team-high 23 digs. Ellie Anderson had 21 assists and 17 digs.
 
Turning Point
After a nail biting first four sets, the Coyotes and the Pioneers were headed into the fifth set. South Dakota came out hungry and put the score up 6-3 forcing Denver into a timeout. A kill by Denver's Kayla Principato and two blocks would put a stop to the Coyote run and put the Pioneers up 7-6. A block by South Dakota's Elizabeth Loschen and Taylor Wilson would give the Coyotes their final lead of the game at 9-8, but two kills hammered down by Denver would push the Pioneers on a 7-2 run to seal the deal.
 
Up Next
South Dakota heads to Denver, Colorado, to compete in the Summit League Tournament Friday through Sunday.