By Rich Winter

605 Sports

BROOKINGS — On Sunday, Dec. 1 South Dakota State junior middle-blocker Sydni Schetnan was gathered with her teammates watching the NCAA volleyball selection show. 

After a 26-1 regular season the team lost to the University of South Dakota in the Summit League finals, missing out on an automatic bid. As the fourth of the regions was finally beginning to be announced Schetnan and her teammates were quickly losing hope. 

“I was telling the girls how nervous I was and that I hadn’t been this nervous since my freshman year of high school,” Schetnan said. “I saw a team that I thought we would be playing called very early and I was like ‘Oh crap.’ ”

Schetnan tried to tell herself and the team that the Jackrabbites were good as the selection show finally got to the Nebraska section of the draw. When the SDSU volleyball team finally heard their name called the entire team jumped up, giving high-fives and hugs. 

“When I finally heard our name called it was immediate relief,” she said. “I was in awe and didn’t quite know what to do. It’s a feeling that I’m never going to forget.”

Schetnan’s road to the NCAA volleyball tournament has been filled with ups and downs and plenty of twists and turns as the 2021 Sioux Falls Washington graduate began her career at the University of Louisville. 

During her time at Louisville Schetnan was part of a Louisville women’s basketball team that reached the Final Four in 2022 before bowing out to the University of South Carolina. 

“One of the main reasons I went to Louisville was they told me I would be able to play both volleyball and basketball,” she said.

Schetnan had connections to the volleyball team as one of the coaches had mentored her as a gangly 13-year old on a club volleyball team in Sioux Falls. She also knew the starting middle-blocker on the Louisville volleyball team. 

Knowing a few people was enough for Schetnan who figured she had people to fall back on while being far away from home. 

“The experience I had down there was kind of eye opening to move from South Dakota to a location in the southern part of the country,” she said. “I met a lot of different people and saw some different styles of coaching and I think the overall experience kind of shaped me into the person I am today.” 

While in Nashville, Tennessee watching her cousin Scott Benson (University of Iowa) play in a bowl game, Schetnan made the decision to move back to South Dakota and continue her sports passion by playing just volleyball. 

“The reason I transferred was to not be on a team that was automatically in everything,” she said. “I wanted to be part of building a winning culture and part of building a dynasty.’ 

It didn’t hurt that Schetnan knew multiple girls on the SDSU volleyball team and that 20 family members lived just an hour south of Brookings in Sioux Falls. 

In 2022 the South Dakota State volleyball team finished 18-15. Schetnan joined the program in 2023 and was part of a team bereft with injuries and finished just 9-20. Schetnan started last season as a right-side hitter but was moved to middle-blocker midseason because of injuries to other teammates. Having not played middle  since middle-school, 2023 was a bit of a transition year for Schetnan who said the nuances of a middle-hitter were like turning her volleyball knowledge upside down. 

“I’m used to a four-set approach as a right-side but as a middle-hitter as I’m on my second step the ball from the setter is already in the air,” she said. “As a post player in basketball I was used to always having my hands up but I had to learn how to read setters and get my hands up to not put my back row in a tough position.” 

Schetnan said the 2023 season was a hard one for everyone in the program but going through the losing season together helped the group become a team. 

Entering the 2024 season Schetnan was asked about her individual goals and team goals by the coaching staff. 

“I don’t really care about individual awards, I want what’s best for my team,” she said. “If they want me to be the best player on the floor, great, I can do that. If they knew I needed to be the best middle they could have I could also do that and that’s how I knew this team would grow.” 

The 2024 team rattled off 21 straight wins to start their season before dropping a 3-2 decision to the University of St. Thomas on Nov. 7 in Brookings. 

“One of the things about the team this season is we have no doubt,” she said. “When we are down two sets we have no doubt that we can come back. Every time we had that little ‘special sauce’ that got us over all those interesting situations.” 

South Dakota State reached the Summit League final against the University of South Dakota. The Jackrabbits dropped a 3-2 decision to a team that swept 3-0 just seven days earlier in the regular season finale. 

The loss put the NCAA tournament dream in jeopardy but Schetnan wasn’t about to let the team get down on themselves. 

“My emotions were a lot different than some of the girls,” she said. “After we lost I was smiling at the USD girls in the handshake line. We huddled up as a team and I got in the middle of the circle and told the girls ‘we aren’t done yet, we played an amazing match and we have nothing to hang our heads about.’ I knew in the back of my mind that we were going to be in the NCAA tournament. 

The No. 9 seeded Jackrabbits leave for Lincoln, Nebraska on Wednesday and are scheduled to play No. 8 seed Miami on Friday, Dec. 6

“To be able to go from where we were last year to where we are this year, and with all the hard work we put in, being on this team is very special,” she said. 

Last week Schetnan was named to the first team of the Summit League. She hit .386, tallied 1.15 blocks per set and netted 2.42 kills per set.