GOLDEN, Colo. – A 2-0 lead for the Colorado School of Mines Volleyball team didn't hold up on Friday night. South Dakota Mines overcame the deficit and toppled the Orediggers in five sets at Lockridge Arena.
 
The Orediggers still had multiple standouts in the loss. Hope Storm's debut as the starting setter resulted in a 43-assist, 18-dig double-double with three total blocks and three kills on .375 hitting. Hannah Kinnison came up with a 16-kill, 17-dig double-double and nearly made it a triple double thanks to nine total blocks. Kate Kudlac and Taylor Helms combined for 26 kills. Olivia Murillo and Avery Perreira totaled 12 digs and 11 digs, respectively. Also notable was Allison Jansen touting eight tota blocks, eight kills on .318 hitting, and two service aces.
 
As a team, Colorado School of Mines (5-11, 2-4 RMAC) turned in a .222 attack percentage. South Dakota Mines (10-6, 5-1 RMAC) converted at .182 on the attack. However, 11 service aces for the Hardrockers turned the tables in their favor. Total blocks, assists, and digs between the two teams were comparable. Another big difference for SDM was Alessanrda Meoni's 22 kills on 45 attempts resulting in a .356 attack percentage. The Hardrockers also benefitted from Hannah Benes' 24 digs, seven assists, and six service aces. With the loss, Colorado School of Mines falls into a five-match skid. The win is South Dakota Mines' third straight.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
The first two sets of the night were all Orediggers. Winning margins of 25-20 and 25-14 were underscored by team attack percentages of .359 and .333. Kudlac and Kinnison both totaled eight kills apiece through the first two frames, and the home team accumulated eight total blocks. Defensive prowess from Jansen and Murillo also helped put Colorado School of Mines in position to sweep its STEM counterparts from South Dakota. But the Hardrockers weren't going anywhere.
 
The visitors used four blocks of their own and four service aces in a 25-21, game-three win. That production offset four more blocks by the Orediggers and four kills off the hand of Helms. Then, the fourth set got out of hand when the home team only hit .030 and SDM tallied three more aces and three more blocks. It resulted in a 25-15 decision which forced a fifth set. Ten ties and five lead changes in the decisive frame told the story. The home team took an early lead, gave it up, hit just .207, but still forced extra points. Another ace, two blocks, and a .323 attack percentage made the difference for the Hardrockers. They clinched the match with a 17-15 win.
 
NOTABLES
- The Orediggers still lead the rivalry with the Hardrockers, 10-6. However, South Dakota Mines has won two straight against Colorado School of Mines for the first time since 1993.
- Fourteen total blocks for the home team are the second most in a match this season.
- Storm, who trained for two years under current assistant coach and former Oredigger setter Drew Stokes, played in her first collegiate match on Friday.
- Storm's 8.6 assists per set average and 3.60 digs per set now rank #1 on the team. Her .375 attack percentage is #3 on the team.
- Kinnison surpassed 900 career kills and notched her seventh double-double as an Oredigger. She also set a new career high for blocks in a match.
- Kate Kudlac moved over 100 kills in her collegiate tenure after a single-match high of 14 kills against SDM.
- An additional milestone included 100 digs on the season for Perreira .
- Jansen's eight total blocks set a new career high for the middle blocker and her two aces matched her collegiate best.
- Six assists for Murillo were a single-match record for the true freshman.
- Head Coach Jamie Magalei is now 359-133 in her 17th season at the helm.
 
WHAT'S NEXT
The Orediggers host Black Hills State on Saturday, Oct. 19, at Lockridge Arena. Free live stats and video on the RMAC Network will be available. Tickets can be purchased online or at the door.
 
Fans can keep up with Mines volleyball on "X" (formerly Twitter) at @minesvolleyball and on Instagram at @mines.volleyball. They can also follow all of Mines Athletics year around on Facebook, "X", and Instagram at @MinesAthletics.