Volleyball had a setback of a week, dropping games against both the University of South Dakota in four and South Dakota State in three. That drops them to 10-13 on the year and 6-8 in conference play. 

Alexis Boling was the pacemaker for the Bison offense on Thursday in the loss against South Dakota, recording a team-high 13 kills. Arianna Blohm and Ali Hinze both had nine kills, and Hinze also added 10 digs. Hinze was one of three players in double-digit digs for the Bison, as Logan O’ Brien had 18 and Eke Denessen had 12. Maddy Dombeck logged 20 assists, and Denessen was good for a double-double with 18 assists. 

South Dakota, 18-6 overall (10-3), jumped out to a 14-7 lead in the third set following a Bison attack error after splitting the first two sets in Fargo Thursday night. The Bison didn’t go quietly, using a 14-9 run to make it a 23-21 Coyote lead. South Dakota was able to put its foot down and fend off the Bison comeback, finishing set three with a final score of 25-22. 

The Coyotes carried their momentum into the fourth set, finding themselves with a 13-6 lead early. A South Dakota kill made the score 19-13, and any sort of Bison comeback fell short.  The Coyotes were able to wrap up the set, 25-16, and the match 3-1. 

The Bison were not able to find their footing in the second match of the weekend, losing in three sets to the South Dakota State Jackrabbits in Brookings. Alexis Boling was once again the Bison leader in kills, logging seven in a team-high tie with Arianna Blohm. Logan O’Brien was the match leader in digs with 22, good for her ninth match this season with 20 or more digs. Maddy Dombeck and Eke Denessen both dished out double-digit assists, with 13 and 12, respectively, and Denessen was able to record five assists. 

A 4-1 Bison run found things knotted up at 17 after a back-and-forth first set. The Jackrabbits (23-1, 12-1) used a 6-3 run to find themselves up 23-20 after a SDSU serving ace. A late Bison push made it 24-23, but the Jackrabbits were able to close things out on a kill and win the set, 25-23. 

Both teams were evenly matched through the early points of set number two, as the Jackrabbits found themselves with a 15-13 lead. A 6-1 run propelled them to a 21-14 advantage, and they rode that momentum to close out the set at 25-18 and take a 2-0 advantage. 

SDSU hit the ground running, jumping out to a 14-3 lead midway through set three. The Bison found the gap too big to overcome, as the Jacks closed out set three 25-14 and the match 3-0. 

NDSU is looking to get back on track on Saturday for senior night as they play host to Kansas City. First Serve is set for 7 p.m. at the Bentson Bunker Fieldhouse.