Mankato, Minn. –  The Minnesota State volleyball team will come home to the friendly confines of Taylor Center as it will play host to a three-match stint this week. On Tuesday, the Mavericks will take on Upper Iowa at 7 p.m. before the Purple and Gold face-off with a pair of ranked opponents this weekend in, Wayne State on Friday at 3 p.m. and Augustana on Saturday at 4 p.m. 

Scouting the Peacocks: Upper Iowa comes into the week with a 10-8 overall record including a 5-5 record in conference play. The Peacocks are coached by Aaron Nelson, who is in his fourth season as coach. Outside hitter Jennifer Mundt leads the Peacocks offensively, as the junior has recorded a team-leading 286 kills, to go along with her 134 digs and 36 total blocks. Senior Hailey Brown does a little of everything for UIU, as she has posted 162 kills, 402 assists, 18 service aces, 205 digs and 28 total blocks.

Scouting the Wildcats:  #12 Wayne State is coached by Scott Kneifi, who is his tenth season  as head coach. The Wildcats come into the week with a 16-2 overall record with a 9-1 record in conference play. WSC is led by junior outside hitter, Katie Hughes, as she has tallied a team-high 204 kills to go along with her 22 assists, 13 service aces, 248 digs and 18 total blocks. Junior outside hitter Elizabeth Gebhardt and sophomore middle blocker Alyssa Frauendorfer have 201 and 197 digs, respectively. Junior setter Leisa McClintock leads the team with 692 assists (10.81 per set). Junior libero Courtney VanGroningen leads the team with 277 digs as sophomore outside hitter Michaela Mestl isn't too far from behind with 266 digs.

Scouting the Vikings: #20 Augustana comes into the week with a 14-4 overall record and a 7-3 conference record. The Vikings are coached by Ashley Buckley who is in her seventh season at the helm. Senior outside hitter Courtney Ysker leads the Vikings with 263 kills (3.93 per set), while freshman defensive specialist, Tahlyr Banks leads the team with 320 digs. Sophomore middle blocker, Becca Finely, leads the NSIC with 81 total blocks.

From Last Week: The Minnesota State University volleyball team went 1-1 as it fell to #2 Minnesota Duluth on Friday, 3-0, before beating St. Cloud State on Saturday in four sets, 3-1.
 
Block Party: Middle blockers, sophomore Krista Hassing and freshman Vikolia Meade each posted seven total blocks in a match this past weekend. Meade accumalated seven on Friday against Minnesota Duluth as Hassing posted seven on Saturday at St. Cloud State. 

How We Stack Up: As a team the Mavericks rank fourth  in the NSIC with 864 assists (13.50 per set) and third in opponents assists with 654 (10.22 per set). MSU currently sits in fifth place with 903 kills (14.11 per set) and sits second on the opponent kills list with 688 kills (10.75 per set). The Purple and Gold lead the NSIC in service aces per set with 1.73 per set.

Killin' It: Sophomore middle blocker Krista Hassing and senior outside hitter Chandra Honebrink come into the week sitting in the top-ten of the conference in kills per set. Hassing is eighth in the NSIC, averaging 3.84 per set with a total of 246 kills, while Honebrink sits in ninth averaging 3.69 per set with a total of 225 kills.

Assisting the Way: Ellie Van De Steeg comes into the week ranked third in the NSIC with an average of 11.97 assists per set, giving her a total 766 assists on the year.

Ace in Your Face: Senior defensive specialist Haley Doran comes into the week ranked seventh in the NSIC in service aces per set with 0.37 giving her 23 on the year.

Can You Dig It?: Sophomore libero Haley Fogarty finds herself  in the top ten of the conference in digs per set. The Belle Plaine, Minn. native comes into the week sitting tenth in the conference with 4.20 for a total of 269 digs.

Returning Roster: The Mavericks return 14 players from their 2013 season, including six seniors Chandra Honebrink, Haley Doran, Jenna McNallan, Tiana Runck, Kaitlyn Braun and Olivia Kuker.

New Faces: MSU has three freshman on its roster for its 2014 campaign. They are Sydney Powell from Lindstrom, Minn., Jackie Jones hailing from Osseo, Minn., and Vikolia Meade from Solon, Iowa.

Preseason Prognosis: The Mavericks are predicted to finish 8th out of the 16 teams in the 2014 NSIC Volleyball Coaches Poll. Concordia-St. Paul was voted to finish first by years end. Junior setter, Ellie Van De Steeg, was chosen as a player to watch in 2014 campaign for the Mavericks.

Conference Honors: Both senior outside hitter Chandra Honebrink (Waconia, Minn.) and junior setter Ellie Van De Steeg (Hutchinson, Minn.) received second team all-conference honors for their efforts on the court last year. Honebrink recorded 306 kills and 178 digs during her junior campaign. Van De Steeg posted 1,100 assists with an average of 10.78 assists per set.

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