OMAHA, Neb. - In a rematch of last year's Summit League Championship match, the Mavericks emerged victorious against their rival as they took down South Dakota 3-1 on Saturday.

Omaha picks up its second win of the season to move to 2-10 along with a 1-1 record in the conference. Meanwhile, the Coyotes are back at .500 at 6-6 and begin their conference slate at 0-1.

Set by Set: (25-22, 23-25, 25-22, 25-16)

• Initially down 8-3 to start the night, Omaha scored six unanswered to pull ahead 9-8 as Shayla McCormick served up back-to-back aces and McKenna Ruch and Brynlee Arnold each had a kill and a block. The lead later grew to 20-15 following a trio of Coyote service errors and multiple kills each for McCormick and Morgan DeBow. Though USD cut the lead down to 20-19, the Mavericks hung on to win it thanks to a decisive Coyote hit that sailed out of bounds.
• Omaha and South Dakota went back and forth all set, frequently matching each other point for point and playing to 15 ties. McCormick and Rachel Fairbanks led the offense with seven combined kills, while Ruch and Hardt combined for seven blocks. Tied at 23 all, though, the Coyotes were the ones to break the stalemate and score two in a row to take the set.
• The Mavericks did not need much offense early in set three as a series of constant costly errors by the Coyotes allowed Omaha to keep pace and eventually take a 17-15 lead. Later, after USD came back on top at 22-21, back-to-back kills from Hardt followed by yet another Coyote error allowed Ruch to win it with her 10th kill of the night.
• Omaha's big hitters continued to keep the pressure on South Dakota as Brynlee Arnold along with Fairbanks and McCormick each recorded four more kills. Along with a solid defense up front led by DeBow, the Coyotes were never able to get started in the fourth as Fairbanks capped off her incredible night with the match-winning kill.

Inside the Box Score

• For the second match in a row, three Mavericks recorded double-digit kills, with Fairbank's leading the charge with her highest kill total since 2021 at 14. McCormick and Ruch were right behind her with 12 and 11 kills, respectively.
• Hardt had six kills tonight, bringing her season total to 102. Ruch also topped the century mark tonight and has 107 on the season.
• Defensively, Fairbanks and McCormick paced Omaha with 13 digs each. For McCormick, this is her second double-double in a row, while Fairbanks gets her first since September 11, 2021 at Creighton.

Up Next 
The Mavericks will be on the road next week as they head up north to take on North Dakota on Thursday at 7 p.m. and North Dakota State on Saturday at 6 p.m.