Coyotes set to host NIVC final with win over Tulsa

The Coyotes (31-2) advanced to the finals on the NIVC Tournament with a 3-1 (19-25, 25-21, 25-15, 25-13) victory over Tulsa (18-16) in the semifinals on Saturday inside the Sanford Coyote Sports Center. It was the team’s 31^st win of the season.

After the victory, head coach LeAnne Williamson addressed the 1,315 in attendance to announce that USD will host Georgia Tech in the championship match inside the SCSC on December 17.

“First off, we have the best fans,” Williamson said to the crowd who responded with a roar of cheers.

USD overcame a sluggish start to earn the semifinal win. In the opening set, the Coyotes had nine errors and a .082 hitting percentage. In the following three sets, they had a combined 16 errors and never hit below a .237 percentage. They also held Tulsa to -.028 and -.021 hitting percentages in the third and fourth sets respectively.

Collectively, the Coyotes tallied 58 kills, seven aces, nine blocks, 56 assists and 89 digs throughout the match.

Freshman outside hitter Elizabeth Juhnke led all Coyotes in kills with 24 to go with her two aces and three assists. She surpassed 500 career kills in the third set of the match. Sophomore middle blocker Maddie Wiedenfeld and senior outside hitter Elizabeth Loschen followed with 10 and seven kills respectively.

Sophomore setter Madison Jurgens led the team in assists with 46, while senior defensive specialist Anne Rasmussen added six.

Defensively, Rasmussen totaled 22 digs, with Jurgens totaling 18 and sophomore outside hitter Lolo Weideman securing 17. Wiedenfeld added five blocks as well.

The Coyotes swept Tulsa in their previous meeting in September at the UMKC Classic in Kansas City, Missouri.  

The Coyotes’ final test will come in the form of a 25-8 Georgia Tech squad for the NIVC Championship. The finals match is set for 7 p.m. on Tuesday inside the SCSC. Tickets are on sale now on goyotes.com or in person at the ticket office in the SCS.