SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – The Augustana volleyball team stormed back from a two-set deficit to stun city rival Sioux Falls, winning a five-set thriller (22-25, 15-25, 25-22, 25-21, 16-14) inside the Elmen Center on Saturday afternoon. With the win, the Vikings improved to 9-10 overall and 3-8 in NSIC play while the Cougars fall to 10-9, 5-6.

Leading the way for the Vikings was Brooke Berens, who tallied a team-high 14 kills while hitting .231 and adding five blocks. Reagan Jansen contributed 13 kills and 17 digs for a well-rounded day and Maya Wente followed closely with 12 kills and hit .345 while adding six blocks.

Setter Kiylah Franke directed the offense with 30 assists and seven digs while Clara Hoegh added 16 assists and seven digs in a key relief effort. Defensively, Alexis Nelson had 15 digs while Gabby Jones added 14. 

At the net, Augustana's blocking was a difference-maker, outpacing the Cougars 13.0 to 10.0 in total team blocks, including five from Sydney Tims.

The Vikings outhit Sioux Falls .194 to .213 overall, but dominated the later sets — swinging .316 in the fourth and .276 in the fifth — while forcing the Cougars into 28 attack errors.

The Vikings opened with strong early swings from Berens and Wente, but Sioux Falls pulled away late, using a 5-2 run to close out the set 25-22.

Momentum stayed with the Cougars, who hit .243 in the second frame while limiting Augustana to just .081. Despite four kills from Jansen and two from Wente, Sioux Falls took the set 25-15 and a 2-0 lead in the match.

Facing elimination, Augustana flipped the script with aggressive serving and improved passing. Behind kills from Opland and Wente, the Vikings built a late 23-22 edge before back-to-back kills from Berens and Jansen sealed a 25-22 win, cutting the deficit in half.

The Vikings continued their surge in the fourth, hitting .316 as Wente and Jansen powered the offense. Berens tallied three of her kills in the set, while Opland and Wente combined for a pair of blocks that swung momentum firmly toward Augustana. The Vikings held off a late Cougar rally to close it 25-21 and force a decisive fifth.

The Elmen Center crowd was electric as both sides traded blows in a high-intensity finale. Berens struck early with three straight kills, and a Gabby Jones ace helped AU grab a 7-4 lead. Sioux Falls rallied to even the score at 13-13, but the Vikings refused to back down — kills from Opland and Wente, followed by a clutch ace from Jansen, capped the comeback and sealed the reverse sweep, 16-14.

The Vikings return to action Tuesday, hosting Wayne State at 6 p.m., inside the Elmen Center.