VERMILLION, S.D. — South Dakota volleyball will hit the road for the first week of Summit League play, traveling to Denver, Colorado and Tulsa, Oklahoma. The Coyotes will face Denver on Thursday at 7:00 p.m. CT and Oral Roberts Saturday at 1:00 p.m. CT.
 
All Summit League matches are streamed on the Summit League Network on Midco Sports Plus.
 
ABOUT THE YOTES

• South Dakota will hit the road for the first week of Summit League play, traveling to Denver for a match Thursday before heading to Tulsa to face Oral Roberts on Saturday.
• The Coyotes complete the nonconference schedule with an 8-3 record.
• Two of the Coyotes losses were to Power 4 opponents against then No. 4 Louisville (1-3 loss, 9/6/24) and Iowa (2-3 loss, 9/19/24).
• The Yotes also picked up a pair of Power 4 wins in a 3-1 victory over then RV Missouri and a 3-1 win over Iowa State at the SCSC during the South Dakota Classic.
• Avery Van Hook picked up her first Summit League Peak Performer of the Week honor, as she was named a co-offensive peak performer.
• Van Hook dished out 144 assists over three matches (13 sets) for a 11.08 assists per set average, a mark that ranked No. 8 across the NCAA last week.
• Van Hook tallied 51 assists in back-to-back matches and has now hit the 50-assist mark three times this season.
• She also put away 15 kills of her own, had two aces and 40 digs on the week. Van Hook tallied a double-double in digs and assists in all three matches.
• Van Hook leads Summit League setters and ranks No. 17 in the NCAA at 10.64 assists per set.
• It is the second straight week a Coyote has been named a peak performer, after Lauren Medeck garnered her first conference weekly award of her career.
• Entering the weekend, USD ranks No. 2 among Summit League teams in assists per set (12.44), digs per set (15.6), hitting percentage (.228) and are No. 1 in kills per set (13.77).
• The Coyotes have earned either a Summit League Regular Season Title or Tournament Championship in each of the last six seasons.
• Leanne Williamson is in her 11th season as the head coach of the Coyotes and holds the record for most win by a USD head coach with a 218-94 record (.699).

 
Where To Watch

• All Summit League matches can be found on the Summit League Network on Midco Sports Plus.
   

Have a Week, Avery!

• Avery Van Hook had an exceptional week at the Kwik Star Klassic, as she was named the tournament's MVP after leading the Yotes to a 2-1 record.
• Van Hook dished out 144 assists across the three matches for a 11.08 assist per set average. That mark ranked No. 8 across the NCAA last week.
• She tallied 15 kills of her own, two aces and 40 digs.
• In the Yotes 3-1 win over Drake, Van Hook handed out 51 assists and helped the Coyote hitters to a .259 attack rate, their best of the weekend.
• She was also busy at the net with a career high eight kills on 11 attacks and assisted in three blocks.
• Van Hook recorded double-doubles with assists and digs in all three matches.
• She just missed her first career triple-double with eight kills against Drake.

 
Spreading the Wealth

• It was a balanced attack that led the Coyotes to a 3-1 win over Drake Friday, as six Yotes tallied eight or more kills.
• Lauren Medeck paced the team with 14 kills and was followed closely by Cheyenne Hlady (13), Kylen Sealock (12) and Morgan Bode (11).
• Of those four, Bode was the most efficient hitter with a .345 attack rate.
• Audrey Nelson put away nine kills, while Avery Van Hook notched eight on 11 attacks (.727%)
• The all-around team effort carried over to Saturday's four-set win over Saint Louis with five Coyotes reaching eight or more kills.
• Hlady led the Coyotes in kills for the first time and put away a career-high 15 kills on 30 swings for a .367 attack rate.
• Nelson also put down a career-high with 11 kills on 23 swings.
   

Can You Dig It?

• Kamryn Farris has commanded the Coyote back row during the nonconference slate, leading the team in digs in 10 of the first 11 matches.
• Farris matched a career-high of 30 digs in the Yotes win over Drake.
• She reached the 30-dig mark last season in a five-set win over South Dakota State.
• Farris has recorded double-digit digs in 10 matches so far this season and has hit the 20+ dig mark three times.
   

Dropping Dimes

• Avery Van Hook has dished out 447 assists across the nonconference schedule.
• Her 10.64 assists per set average ranks No. 1 across Summit League setters and ranks No. 17 nationally.
• Van Hook dished out 51 assists in two straight matches to close out the Kwik Star Klassic and has hit the 50-assist mark three times this season and six times in her career.
• The sophomore setter tallied her 1,000th career assist in the Coyotes match against #4 Louisville.

 
Medeck Named Peak Performer

• Freshman Lauren Medeck impressed in her first action at the Sanford Coyote Sports Center this past weekend, earning herself the Summit League Offensive Peak Performer of the Week honors.
• Medeck helped the Coyotes to a 3-0 weekend at the South Dakota Classic with wins over Montana State, Iowa State and UTEP.
• Medeck put away 49 kills across the three matches, with a 3.77 kills per set average, at a .266 swing rate.
• She also tallied 34 digs, one ace and nine total blocks (three solo).
• Medeck had 20 kills in the USD win over Montana State and recorded her first of two double-doubles on the weekend.
• Medeck also recorded a double-double in the Coyotes win with 13 kills and 10 digs in the win over UTEP on Sunday.
• Medeck paced the team with 16 kills, on a .310 hitting percentage, as USD won its second match over a Power 4 opponent in six days.
• The Coyotes won 3-1 over RV Missouri at the NKU Invitational on 9/8/24).

 
Instant Impact

• Samantha Laird took the floor in third set vs Saint Louis Saturday and went right to work putting down two straight kills to tie the score at 14-14.
• Laird would put away four kills on an efficient six swings with no errors in the set.
• Laird added a pair of kills in the fourth set and tallied a block as the Yotes won the fourth set to take the match, 3-1.
• It wasn't until the fourth set in the match against Iowa State at the USD Classic that Amanda Loschen took the floor, but after starting in the Coyotes rotation, she made an immediate impact.
• On back-to-back plays, Loschen recorded a solo block and a kill to give the Coyotes an early 5-1 lead over the Cyclones, forcing an ISU timeout.
• Loschen ended the set with two kills, two digs and two blocks as the Yotes closed out the match win with a 25-20 set four score.
   

Summit League Success

• In each of the past six seasons, the Coyotes have either earned a Summit League Regular Season Title or Conference Tournament Championship.
• During the past six years, the Coyotes are 84-15 (84.9%) during the conference regular season and won at least 12 conference games and lost no more than four matches during that stretch.
• South Dakota is the most recent Summit League team to put together an undefeated conference regular season, when the team went a perfect 16-0 during the 2019 season.

 
Freshmen Impact

• A trio of freshmen have made their presence known in the Coyote lineup in Lauren Medeck, Audrey Nelson and Morgan Bode.
• Medeck ranks No. 2 on the team with 121 kills, Bode is No. 3 with 84 and Nelson is No. 5 with 80.
• Bode is swinging at a team-high .281 clip.
• The three freshmen are 1-2-3 in total blocks for the Yotes.
• Bode leads the team with 37 blocks (five solo), followed by Nelson's 30 (six solo) and Medeck has 17 (three solo).

 
On Deck

• Freshman Lauren Medeck has led the Yotes in seven of the last eight matches in kills.
• She has averaged 15.0 kills per match over those eight matches.
• Medeck put away a career-best 20 kills against Montana State (9/13/24).
• Medeck has five double-doubles on the season, all with kills and digs.
• Medeck put away a team best and then career high 17 kills in the Coyotes 3-1 win over RV Missouri on Sept. 8
• Medeck also recorded her first double-double against the Tigers with 12 digs.
• Medeck led the Coyotes in kills for the first time in her career the game prior, a 3-0 loss to Northern Kentucky with 11 kills. It also marked first match with double-digit kills.
• In the match against NKU, Medeck caught fire in the second set, putting down 10 kills in the frame.