VERMILLION, S.D. (Sept. 13, 2019) - Wyoming dropped a pair of four-set matches Friday at the South Dakota Classic, losing to Iowa in the opener, 29-27, 18-25, 22-25 and 23-25 and then to host-South Dakota in the nightcap 26-24, 25-14, 25-15 and 25-13.
The Cowgirls got out to a fast start in set one against the Hawkeyes, jumping out to an early 7-3 lead and led by as many as four, 13-9 later on in the set. Wyoming led the opener most of the way and was up 15-12 before a Hawkeyes' timeout.
After Iowa cut the Wyoming lead down to 16-15, the Cowgirls responded out of a timeout to score 3-of-4 and force Iowa's final timeout of the set at 19-16. The Hawkeyes would respond however, eventually tying the set at 24-24 after trailing late, 23-20. The Pokes would rally for the win, scoring the final three points to take the set after trailing 27-26.
After losing the next two sets, the Pokes got off to a much better start in set four, taking an 11-6 lead early on. Wyoming remained in front for most of the set, maintaining its five-point lead at 16-11 later on. Iowa, much like it did in the first set, would claw its way back to force a Wyoming timeout at 18-17.
The two teams essentially traded points for the rest of the fourth set before back-to-back points from the Cowgirls broke a 21-21 tie, forcing a Hawkeye timeout. Out of the break, Iowa would go on a run to close things out, scoring the final four points to thwart the Cowgirl comeback.
KC McMahon led the Cowgirls offensively in the loss with 18 kills while hitting .310. Jackie McBride added 10 and also registered a match-high six block assists. Faith Waitsman had five kills and hit .556 in the loss.
Mackenzie Coates tallied her second double-double of the season and third of her career in the match against the Hawkeyes as she had 47 assists to go along with 10 digs. Coates also had five blocking assists. Madi Fields led the Pokes with 21 digs from her libero spot.
As a team, the Hawkeyes out-hit the Pokes .266 to .243 and also had three more service aces (8-5). Wyoming did have seven total blocks to Iowa's five.
Against USD (8-1), Wyoming got off to a slow start and trailed by as many as eight, 19-11 and 23-16 late in set one. But the Cowgirls rattled off an incredible 10 of the next 11 points and won the first set 26-24. However from that point on, the Coyotes controlled the rest of the match and took the next three sets.
The Cowgirls (4-4) hit just .129 in the loss while USD blistered the ball for a .468 clip.
Hailey Zuroske led the way with seven kills in the match while McBride and Tara Traphagan added six each. Coates led Wyoming with 21 assists while Kyra Slavik chipped in with nine. Fields had a solid match in the back row, leading the way with 18 digs.
The Cowgirls close the South Dakota Classic in a 9:30 a.m., match Saturday against UC Davis.
-WYO-
