OMAHA, Neb. -- The Omaha volleyball program challenges the visiting South Dakota State Jackrabbits for a Monday night Summit League showdown. The match takes place at 7 p.m. inside Baxter Arena.
OPENING SERVE
• The Omaha volleyball program is coming off a pair of five-set Summit League losses to Purdue Fort Wayne and Denver.
•
Sami Clarkson is coming off her sixth double-double of the season while
Isabella Sade,
Anna Blaschko,
Rachel Fairbanks,
Sadie Limback and
Alexa Blase each notched double-digit kills.
• Omaha and South Dakota State meet for the first time this season.
• The Mavericks own a 43-20 series lead over the Jackrabbits, including the last four meetings.
• Sade's 3.57 kills per set in league play rank first on the team and third overall in the conference.
•
Claire Mountjoy's 389 total digs and 4.47 digs per set rank second and fourth in the league.
• The Mavericks are 2-8 in five-set matches.
• The team's 10 five-set matches are the most in the program's Division I history and the most since the 1995 season (12).
SET IT UP, SAMI!
Freshman
Sami Clarkson took over the starting setter duties on Sept. 13 against Creighton. Since her debut, the freshman has six double-doubles this season.
Clarkson notched her first-career double-double of 39 assists and 11 digs in the 3-0 win over Drake on Sept. 14. The Omaha native has notched back-to-back double-doubles on two separate occasions this season.
Clarkson notched a career-high 58 assists with 11 digs in the 3-1 win over North Dakota State on Sept. 29. The freshman tied her career-high of 58 assists with a new career-best of 13 digs Sunday afternoon against Purdue Fort Wayne at home. So far, she has eight matches of 50-plus assists, in which five happened consecutively from Sept. 21-Oct. 1.
SCOUTING SOUTH DAKOTA STATE
The Jackrabbits enter the match with a 5-14 overall record and a 2-5 mark in league play. South Dakota State has league wins over North Dakota State (3-1) and North Dakota (3-1). Recently, the Jackrabbits fell to Purdue Fort Wayne in five sets on Oct. 18.
Outside hitter Mackenzie Hennen ranks fifth in the league with 3.34 kills per set in league play. Tatum Pickar ranks fifth among league members with 3.97 digs per set and 294 total digs in conference action. The Jackrabbits are led by head coach Nicole Cirillo who owns a 12-75 overall record in her fifth season at the helm of the program.
LOOKING AHEAD
The Mavericks volleyball program returns to action for a Saturday, Oct. 26, road contest at North Dakota for the second half of conference play. The match is slated for an 11 a.m. start time.
