JACKSONVILLE, Ala.-- North Dakota breezed past a pair of non-conference opponents at Jacksonville State University Wednesday. After a 3-0 blanking of the host Gamecocks in front of a raucous crowd at a local high school in the morning, UND swept Alcorn State in a match that featured some record performances.
"Two wins. That helps," UND head coach Mark Pryor said. "The thing about today that I like more than the W's was that we had opportunities in both matches to get some valuable playing time and get some other players some rest.
"Grace Bettenga played well, and she played in three different spots today. She played within herself and didn't try to do too much. That hitting percentage she had was nice to see. Sidney Mattson did a great job of running the team and you could see her gradually get more comfortable. Chai Pappa came in and was exceptional serving and she made some really nice swings for kills. We need those players to be able to do that consistently when they are called on."
The morning started with UND taking care of JSU, 25-18, 25-23, 25-23. Senior Chelsea Moser and junior Faith Dooley each recorded 13 kills as North Dakota out-hit the Gamecocks, .257 to .106. UND leaped out to a 7-2 start and never looked back in that opening frame with Moser and Dooley combining to kill 10 balls on just 14 swings without an error.
The second set had a different look to it as JSU (2-6) held the advantage early before UND rallied to force 11 tie scores. The lead would change hands five times in the final stages before a Dooley kill and a Teo Tepavac service tidied up the set, 25-23.
In the third, although the home team made it close near the conclusion, UND took the lead from the start and never relinquished it to close the match, 3-0.
"It was a great experience for us to play in a high school and be able to promote the game," said Pryor. "Playing in front of 1400 is always fun. The only regret was that we finished too soon. Their football team told me it was sloppy joe day in the cafeteria and we were invited."
In the afternoon match, UND (4-4) was able to rest some starters, but got huge contributions from its reserves. Sophomore Grace Bettenga recorded a new career high with 10 kills while redshirt freshman Sidney Mattson parlayed her first career start into a career-best 33 assists. Chai Pappa had four kills on just six attempts to help a North Dakota offense that hit .436 for the match.
It was 7-2 to start the first set and it was 13-7 before UND strung together a dozen straight points on the service of Tepavac. She would tally a pair of aces in that run, including the set winner for the 25-7 win, tying the school record for fewest points allowed in a set in the rally-scoring era. North Dakota overcame a 9-7 deficit in the second set to score 18 of the final 26 points for a quick two sets to none lead.
The Fighting Hawks again made quick work of their opponent in the third, jumping out to an 11-1 lead before book-ending it with a set-ending 11-1 run for a 25-7 victory and just 32 points allowed for the entire match, two shy of the school record in rally scoring.
"It gets nothing but harder from here," Pryor noted. "Tomorrow we have a chance to compete with an ACC team (Clemson). I'm looking forward to see how we respond to playing on ESPN and being in that hostile environment."
North Dakota will head to Clemson for a Thursday match on ESPN3 to start the Clemson Classic. It continues Friday with neutral-site tilts against
Notes: UND's 32 points allowed in the win over Alcorn State was two away from the school record for fewest in a match in the rally-scoring era (30- vs. Chicago State, Oct., 25, 2009) ... Teo Tepavac had seven service aces in the win over Alcorn State, a new season high ... She also added new season highs in kills (3) and digs (16) vs. ASU ... Grace Bettenga's 10 kills were a new career best ... Sidney Mattson recorded 33 assists to set a new personal best ... Tamara Merseli's 17 digs in the JSU win tied a season high ... UND .436 hitting percentage in the ASU match marked the highest team total since hitting .500 in a sweep of North Dakota State in 2013 (Sep. 30) ... North Dakota's six hitting errors marks the second time this season and 13th time in the tenure of coach Mark Pryor that the team's error total was in single digits in a match ... North Dakota is 4-0 this season when it wins the first set.
