BROOKINGS — The South Dakota State volleyball team made sure the opening night of First Bank & Trust Arena was a success on Thursday night as the Jackrabbits swept Kansas City and remained undefeated.

It was a night that Jackrabbit players, coaches and fans had been waiting for and it lived up to the hype. 2,853 fans took in the match in the newly renovated arena and that set an SDSU volleyball attendance record.

“Thank you to our entire community for being here,” said SDSU head coach Dan Georgalas. “The focus on the arena opener has been on our minds for two years but this game was about more than that. It was about bringing our community together and saying thank you to our amazing fan base and awesome alumni. … Tonight it felt like more than volleyball.”

The build up to the match was evident as fans made their way to their seats earlier than usual and the student section was almost completely full. Sophomore setter Rylee Martin said she was anxious all day for the match to start but she was able to take it all in before the first serve.

“All day today I was so excited and four hours before the match I was antsy and couldn't sit down, and I’m not typically a person that’s like that,” Martin said. “Just before the match I felt this overwhelming sense of peace and realized how blessed I am. 

“It makes me emotional because we were talking about this [renovated arena] when I was getting recruited as a junior in high school. Now, being a sophomore, [it’s here]. Our senior Analee [Ventling-Brown] has been here for four years and she’s seen the process of construction and had to walk outside for practice. It’s just so cool getting to see that growth and I just feel so blessed.” 

The two teams traded the first 20 points of the first set as it was 10-10 but the Jacks then scored four-straight to make it 14-10. SDSU then led 19-15 but Kansas City went on a 5-0 run to go up 20-19. The Roos then led 22-21 but the Jacks scored the final four points to go up 1-0.

It was a close second set as the teams went back and forth again and it was 18-18. The Jacks then went on a 7-2 run to close the set out and take a 2-0 lead. 

SDSU led 11-7 in set three but the Roos fought back and tied things up at 13-13. It was then 18-18 before the Jacks went on a 7-1 run and completed the sweep.

The Jacks have now won seven matches via sweep and the 14-0 start is tied for the best in program history as SDSU went 14-0 in 2000. Closing out sets was something the Jacks struggled with last season and Georgalas said his team being older has resulted in them coming through in the clutch. He also noted that this was where he thought the program would be in his fifth year as Jackrabbit head coach.

“We have a real mature team,” he said. “We have two 23 year olds who just celebrated their birthday recently and have a third who will turn 23 by the time the season ends. We have a mature group and the seven players that stayed after last season, we just give them a ton of credit. Last season wasn’t easy but this group really showed its character when things got hard. 

“We give [that group] a lot of credit and have built around them with recruiting and the transfer portal. … When I took this job in 2020 and the pandemic started two months later, this was the five year vision that we had. Now we’re in year five and all of the puzzle pieces are coming together and it feels really good.”

Sylvie Zgonc led the Jacks with 17 kills and 11 digs. Sydni Schetnan had 11 kills. Martin had 19 assists and five digs. Camryn Honn had 11 assists and Madison Burr had eight digs and four kills. Rachel Wieber, Alia Schlimgen and Joslyn Richardson each had seven digs and Katie Van Egdom had five kills.

With the record setting crowd on hand, some teams would let the pressure of getting a win for the fans get to them, but the Jackrabbits handled business just like they have all year. Georgalas said SDSU playing its first 13 games of the season away from Brookings really helped toughen his team up mentally. 

“It feels like we’ve been on the road for two years. We’ve been so displaced and without this and this is dusty and this is getting renovated. There hasn’t been a normal season yet [since I’ve been here] and we’ve been on the road and figuring it out. I don’t think we played in front of a big student section and a big home court advantage yet, but based on how we play at the end of sets and how we play when we go down 2-0 or give up a 2-0 lead, this group plays its best volleyball when it matters most,” Georgalas said.

The night was special for everyone involved in the program, but it was especially special for the players who have had to deal with the renovation over the past year and a half. Martin said it was special to have everything come together.

“I was so excited. I’m from Colorado and my family was here. My brother flew in. Once again, I just felt blessed because I dreamed of this. I’m from a small town and I’ve always wanted to play in a big atmosphere where we have fans that love the community and what we do. … It was an overwhelming sense of gratitude towards Jackrabbit nation and the town of Brookings,” Martin said. 

SDSU will stay at home next week as the Jacks host Omaha on Oct. 10 at 7 p.m. They will then take on North Dakota in Brookings on Oct. 12 at 7 p.m.