MACOMB, Ill. - Opening up the final series of the Summit League's regular season, Western Illinois volleyball (2-14, 2-13) welcomed South Dakota (12-6, 11-3) to Western Hall early Friday afternoon (March 26). The guests took home a three-set victory (22-25, 14-25, 13-25).

Trailing 5-0 in the first period, WIU eventually settled to tie the margin, 7-7. Mariah Mitchell and Peyton Bowman were anchors during the turnaround - netting a couple of kills. USD sprung on another run for six straight points. Nevertheless, the Leathernecks closed the gap once again to 14-12. Led by Mitchell and Aubrey Putman, Western kept close for the next several possessions, and an attacking error by the Coyotes evened the score at 22. However, USD posted two more kills, and an unsuccessful spike by WIU ended the opening set.

USD jumped ahead early in the second set as well, 6-1. Emma Norris delivered a kill for WIU, and three errors by the Coyotes helped Western again squash the lead down bit by bit. Abby Knoop tallied her first kill of the day, and Jessie Connell handed out a service ace, with the team down 15-10. Not long after, USD answered by scoring 10 of its next 12 tries to take the second, 25-14.

In a similar fashion to the second, the Coyotes maintained a significant lead for most set three. Norris and Putman contributed to the WIU offense with three kills each during the stretch. Down 22-9, Western gave one final push of four points before falling 25-13 to end the day in three frames.

Putman finished with seven kills, while Mitchell and Norris both had six. Connell notched her fourth straight match of 10 or more assists, as she dished out 11 on Friday. First-year Ashley Poland stepped in to succeed on two service aces. Putman also collected a team-high seven digs.

Senior day takes place for WIU tomorrow (March 26). The 4 p.m. match will be live streamed on Leatherneck All-Access. Knoop, Mitchell, Norris, and Cassie Hunt are all to be honored before the first serve.