The Hawks defeated Sioux Falls in five sets (25-18, 25-14, 23-25, 20-25, 15-10) in the Friday nightcap of the Rockhurst Classic.
 
The Cougars took Rockhurst to the brink after falling behind two sets to none, but the Hawks' powerful outside hitting proved to be too much for Sioux Falls in the fifth set.
 
Karli Reichert and Alyssa Woodman combined for 35 kills, while Emily Matio and Audrey Arand added 12 and 11, respectively.
 
Sophomore setter Dani Prusha chipped in with 39 assists, while Kalie Arnold led the Hawks in digs with 22.
 
Set One: Rockhurst 25, Sioux Falls 18
The Hawks came out firing in the opening set, jumping out to a 24-12 lead. Despite a late 6-0 run by the Cougars, Rockhurst held on to win by seven.
 
Set Two: Rockhurst 25, Sioux Falls 14
Sioux Falls hung around early, trailing 12-9, but the Hawks closed out the set on a 13-5 run, aided by six attack errors by the Cougars.
 
Set Three: Sioux Falls 25, Rockhurst 23
With eight ties and five lead changes, the Hawks and Cougars traded punches in set three. Despite 18 kills and a .438 hitting percentage, the Hawks dropped the set after leading 22-21.
 
Set Four: Sioux Falls 25, Rockhurst 20
The Cougars jumped out to a 7-2 lead in set four. Rockhurst trimmed the lead to one at 10-9, but Sioux Falls scored the next five points and never looked back.
 
Set Five: Rockhurst 15, Sioux Falls 10
Tied in the final set, Alyssa Woodman spiked back-to-back kills to start a 4-0 run where the Hawks would jump ahead 7-3. A Sioux Falls kill cut the lead to 10-8, but the Hawks won five of the next seven points to take the match 3-2.
 
"I thought we squandered the third set," Coach Tracy Rietzke said. "We made too many mistakes. We got down early in the fourth set. It was important to come out and get the lead and momentum in set five." 
 
Player of the Match
Alyssa Woodman. Posting a double-double with 17 kills and 10 digs, Woodman came up clutch down the stretch, starting the aforementioned 4-0 run and spiking home the 15th point in the decisive set.
 
Inside the Box Score

• The Hawks played a clean match, maintaining a hitting percentage of .360
• Of their 81 points across the five sets, 69 were via kill (85 percent). 

On Deck
The Hawks host Emporia State at 1 p.m. on Saturday.