Coyotes Get Past Mavericks, 3-1

Box Score OMAHA, Neb. – The Omaha volleyball team welcomed conference-leading South Dakota to Sapp Fieldhouse on Tuesday night, where the Coyotes took a 3-1 win over the Mavericks (25-20, 20-25, 25-20, 25-20). Omaha drops to 6-10 (1-2 Summit League), while USD improves to 9-6 (3-0 Summit League).

Junior outside hitter Kelley Wollak was Omaha's catalyst on the offensive end, recording a game-high 16 kills.
Freshman setter Sydney O'Shaughnessy recorded her third straight double-double with 11 assists and 13 digs, and junior setter/rightside hitter Michaela Schimmer added another double-double with a team-high 24 assists and 10 digs.

As a team, Omaha continued to dominate its opponent on the block. The Mavericks outblocked USD 10-6, marking the fifth consecutive match that Omaha has outblocked its opposition. Schimmer and junior middle blocker Diane Banderas led the Maverick blocking machine with five stops apiece, and junior middle blocker Megan Schmale added four blocks herself.

In the closely contested match, South Dakota took the first game thanks to some timely scoring. The score was knotted at 5-5, when USD rallied off four straight points to jump to a 9-5 lead, and the Coyotes never looked back en route to a 25-20 win.

Game two saw Omaha and South Dakota go back and forth until the end. Wollak smashed a kill to make it 20-18 in favor of the Mavericks, keeping UNO on top for good. Omaha hit .241 in the set, while USD hit just a mere .088, and Omaha won the set, 25-20.0

In set three, the two teams swapped points to a 13-13 tie, after which the Coyotes rallied off seven straight points. Despite losing the set 25-20, Omaha outhit South Dakota .206 to .195.

Like the first three games, the fourth set was tight until the very end. Omaha led the game 15-13 before USD scored seven uninterrupted points on Brittany Jessen's serving run. Jessen finished the set with 15 assists, bringing her match total to 55 helpers.

In total, South Dakota hit .200 to Omaha's .186. Three players had double-figure kills, with 16 from Melissa Firtko, 15 from Kendal Kritenbrink and 12 from Audrey Reeg. Reeg added digs for a double-double.

"This was a very closely matched contest tonight against South Dakota," head coach Rose Shires said. "We played right with them, and that was good for our team to see. In particular, I thought our block and our defense did well in keeping us competitive in the match."

Omaha continues Summit League play this weekend, hosting North Dakota State at Sapp Fieldhouse on Friday at 7 p.m. Links to live stats and video will be available on OMavs.com.

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Players Mentioned

#8 Diane Banderas: MB; 5' 9"; Junior

#1 Sydney O'Shaughnessy: S; 5' 8"; Freshman

#18 Michaela Schimmer: S/RS; 6' 0"; Junior

#6 Megan Schmale: MB; 6' 0"; Junior

#7 Kelley Wollak: OH; 5' 9"; Junior

Players Mentioned

#8 Diane Banderas
: 5' 9"; Junior
: MB

#1 Sydney O'Shaughnessy
: 5' 8"; Freshman
: S

#18 Michaela Schimmer
: 6' 0"; Junior
: S/RS

#6 Megan Schmale
: 6' 0"; Junior
: MB

#7 Kelley Wollak
: 5' 9"; Junior
: OH