STORRS, Conn. — South Dakota volleyball hit a season-best .357 with six players recording five or more kills as the Coyotes won in straight sets (25-20, 25-23, 25-12) over Ball State Saturday morning.
 
South Dakota's effective attack was highlighted by three players hitting over .350 (10+ swings). Lauren Medeck put away 16 kills, her fifth straight match with 10+, on a .353 clip. Ava Ball and Amanda Loschen each had eight kills and a .467 swing rate. The floor general, Avery Van Hook, tallied 38 assists and had five kills of her own with a .571 attack percentage.
 
The Coyotes dominated the third set with 19 kills and a .467 hitting percentage while holding Ball State to five terminations and a .000 clip. The Coyotes back row fed the USD attack with 15 digs in the set, led by Sam Untiedt's five. The Yotes pulled away from BSU at the midway point with an 11-0 run, fueled by Medeck who was responsible for six of the 11 points with five kills and a solo block. Amelia Dugger checked in for the Yotes for the first time this season, and put away match point with a kill, assisted by Van Hook.
 
South Dakota's offense was clicking from the start as they held a .400 hitting percentage in the opener with 16 kills. Five Coyotes had multiple kills in the set and was paced by Medeck's five. She was followed by Ball and Loschen who had three each. With the Yotes leading by one, 16-15, back-to-back terminations from Loschen started a 5-1 Coyote run and the Yotes would hold the Cardinals at bay to take set one, 25-20.  
 
Ball State opened the second set with a 5-2 lead, but the Yotes quickly pulled ahead with five straight unanswered points. Looking to even the match at one a piece, the Cardinals held an 18-14 lead late. USD, however, closed the second set strong with a 7-2 run to make the match 2-0 in USD's favor. The block party was in full swing to end the frame, as Loschen and Nelson combined for a block and Loschen recorded two solo blocks in the run. The Yotes received points off back-to-back Cardinal errors to finish the set 25-23.
 
Farris led the Coyotes with 12 digs and had an ace, while Medeck secured a double-double with 11 digs. Sam Untied and Van Hook each had seven digs.
 
Next up for the Yotes is the Coyote Invitational at the Sanford Coyote Sports Center starting on Thursday night against Green Bay at 7 p.m.
 
Notes

• South Dakota is now 3-0 all-time against Ball State and are 3-1 in neutral site games in 2025
• Lauren Medeck led the Yotes in kills for the fifth match in a row with 16 on a season-high .353 hitting percentage
• Medeck also notched her fifth straight double-double with 11 digs
• Ava Ball and Amanda Loschen had matching stat lines with eight kills on 15 swings for a .467 clip
• The Yotes hit .357 for the match, the highest hitting percentage in a match this season
• The Yotes held Ball State to 12 points in the third set, the second time they've held an opponent to less than 15 points in a set this season
• The Coyotes are now 131-4 all-time when winning the first two sets under head coach Leanne Williamson