By Ethan Wolbach
After being swept by the Denver Pioneers on Friday, Omaha was back in action Sunday in their final match of the regular season against the South Dakota State Jackrabbits in Brookings, SD. In the two teams last matchup at Baxter Arena, the Mavericks swept the Jackrabbits 3-0.
Looking for the sweep again, the Mavericks jumped out to an early 10-4 lead in set one before South Dakota State responded by pulling within one-point at 15-14. Omaha then quickly pulled away again as the Mavericks finished off the set on a 6-2 run thanks to Isabella Sade and Sadie Limback.
In set two, it was seemingly all South Dakota State. Kicking the set off on a 7-3 run, Omaha found themselves in an early hole and struggled to recover. Omaha pulled within two points at 13-11, however, the Jackrabbits quickly regained momentum snapping off a 7-1 to pull ahead 20-12. On three straight serves by Makenzie Hennen, the Jackrabbits took the set from the Mavericks 25-16.
In a pivotal set three, the Mavericks opened the set on a 7-3 run before South Dakota State clawed their way back into the set to take the lead at 13-12. However, Omaha regained the lead 18-13, by quickly snapping off a 6-0 run behind the hand of Limback. The Jackrabbits were not out of the set yet as 5 errors by the Mavericks allowed the Jackrabbits to within one, 20-19. Trading points back and forth Omaha eventually took the set 25-23 off a kill by Anna Blaschko.
Looking to shut the door, Omaha again opened the set on a 7-3 run but not before South Dakota State battled back to tie the set at 10-10. From that point on it was the Sade and Blaschko show for Omaha as the duo tallied 7 kills in the later stages of the set. The Mavericks ended the fourth set on a 5-1 run to take the set and the match from the Jackrabbits.
For Omaha, Sadie Limback extended her double-digit kill streak to 16 matches as Sade (13), Blaschko (11) and Blase (10) also notched double-digit kills in the match. Freshman Sami Clarkson quietly cruised her way to a double-double, accounting for 48 assists and 12 digs for the Mavericks.
Looking ahead, Omaha secured the #4 seed for the upcoming Summit League Tournament and will face off against the #5 seeded North Dakota State Bison. That match is scheduled for 4 p.m. CST on Friday, November 22 and can be heard on Mavradio.fm from Denver, CO.
