Mankato, Minn. – The Minnesota State volleyball team will host the likes of #8 Minnesota Duluth and St. Cloud State this weekend at Taylor Center. The Mavericks will host the Bulldogs on Friday at 7:00 p.m., before taking on the Huskies on Saturday at 4:00 p.m. Friday's match will also include a chance for all MSU students to take part in the $10,000 serve. 

Looking Back: The Mavericks suffered a hard fought loss to #4 Concordia-St. Paul on Tuesday at Taylor Center. MSU fell to CU in three sets by scores of (26-24, 25-15, 25-21).

Junior Krista Hassing [Blue Earth, Minn.] led MSU's offensive attack with 11 kills and also added three total blocks. Junior Courtney Anderson [Tripoli, Iowa] and Sydney Geisness [St. Croix Falls, Wis.] each pitched in with seven kills of their own, as Anderson collected a .500 attack percentage and Geisness tallied two service aces.

Junior Rissi McNallan [Andover, Minn.] added a team-leading 13 digs, along with two service aces, while freshman Autumn Risch [Howards Grove, Wis.] posted a team-high 26 assists in the loss.

With the loss, the Mavericks record falls to 12-8 overall and 6-6 in NSIC play.
 
Concerning #8 Minnesota Duluth: The #8 Bulldogs enter Friday's match with a 16-5 overall record and a 9-3 record in NSIC play. UMD is coached by 14 year head coach Jim Boos who is a three-time NSIC Coach of the Year recipient and has helped guide his team to 13 straight NCAA tournament appearances. 

Friday's matchup will mark as the 63rd all-time meeting between UMD and MSU. The Bulldogs own a 43-19 all-time record over the Mavericks, as UMD has won six of the last seven meetings between the two schools.

Last season the Mavericks met up with the Bulldogs in Duluth, Minn. and fell to UMD in straight sets by scores of 25-15, 29-27 and 25-15. Junior Krista Hassing posted seven kills, while sophomore Vikolia Meade [Solon, Iowa] tallied seven total blocks and junior Haley Fogarty [Belle Plaine, Minn.] recorded 13 digs in the loss.

This season the Bulldogs currently rank second in Division II in kills per set (14.79), fourth in assists per set (13.82) and sixth in hitting percentage (.290). UMD ranks second in the NSIC in all these categories as Northern State sits a top in the NSIC in each category.

The Bulldogs also lead the NSIC in total kills with 1,080 and total assists with 1,009. Lastly, UMD ranks fifth in the NSIC in blocks per set with 2.2.

Senior Mariah Scharf leads UMD this season with 326 kills, 4.29 kills per set and 15 service aces. Scharf currently leads the NSIC in kills per set. Junior Taylor Wissbroeker sits second on the team in both kills with 225 and digs with 174. 

The Bulldogs have three other players who have recorded 100 or more kills so far this season. All three also sit in the top-10 of the NSIC in attack percentage. Junior Syndie Mauch leads the trio as she has racked up 192 kills and sits third in the NSIC with a .381 attack percentage. Freshman Sarah Kelly has collected 167 kills and ranks ninth in the NSIC in attack percentage with .349. Rounding out the trio is senior Monica Turner who has tallied 166 kills and places fourth in the conference in attack percentage with .368. Turner also leads the Bulldogs with 76 total blocks, while Mauch is second on the team with 68 total blocks.

Senior Ashley Hinsch leads UMD with 951 assists so far this season, which is third best in Division and also owns the second best assists per set stat in Division II with 12.51.

Concerning St. Cloud State: The Huskies enter the weekend with an 8-12 overall record and a 4-8 record in NSIC play after losing four straight contests. SCSU is coached by Chad Braegelmann who is in his first season on the job. 

Saturday's matchup will mark as the 95th all-time meeting between the Huskies and Mavericks. MSU holds a 45-49 overall record against SCSU, however the Mavericks have owned the series in recent history as they have won eight of the last nine contests between the two schools.

Last season the Mavericks squared off with the Huskies up in St. Cloud, Minn and MSU was able to prevail in four sets over SCSU. Junior Krista Hassing tallied 19 kills and seven total blocks in the win, while junior Haley Fogarty added 14 digs and five assists.

This season, the Huskies rank fifth in the NSIC in digs per set with 16.32 and sit ninth in the conference in block per set with 1.84. SCSU also ranks 11th the NSIC in hitting percentage (.186), assists per set (11.58) and kills per set (12.15).

The Huskies have five players with 100 or more kills this season, including Sophie Jaskulske (174), Rachel Burke (168), Macy Weller (142), Kellan Flynn (129) and Shannon Kline (123).  Flynn and Weller also lead the Huskies blocking attack this season with 56 and 55 total blocks, respectively.

SCSU also has four players with at least 100 or more digs so far this season, including senior Brianne Stamer. She leads the Huskies this season with 383 digs and ranks second in the NSIC in digs per set with 5.39.

Assisting the way for the Huskies this season is senior Allison Butler who has racked up 524 assists (7.38 per set) and a team-leading 20 service aces. 

Statistically Speaking: Through 20 matches, the Mavericks rank eighth in the NSIC in attack percentage with a .225 clip and seventh in opponent hitting percentage with a mark of .180. MSU also sits in fourth in the conference in blocks per set with 2.22, eighth in assists per set with 12.22 and kills per set with 12.90. 

Double-Doubles: The Mavericks this season have recorded eight  double-doubles this season as senior setter Ellie Van De Steeg [Hutchinson, Minn.] leads the pack with a team-high five, including 50 assists and 12 digs against Maryville earlier this season. Junior Krista Hassing owns two double-doubles this season, including a notable 21 kills and 12 total blocks in a five set win over Sioux Falls earlier this season. Freshman Nevena Vukomanovich [Maplewood, Minn.] holds the other double-double this season as she posted 11 kills and 12 digs in a come-from-behind win over Upper Iowa this season.

Where they Rank: Junior Krista Hassing currently sits in second in the NSIC in kills per set with 4.28, fourth in blocks per set with 1.14 and 15th in the conference in hitting percentage with .311. The Blue Earth, Minn native still ranks fourth in Division II in points per set with 5.23.

Junior Haley Fogarty ranks third in the NSIC in digs per set with 4.92, while junior Rissi McNallan currently sits 13th in the NSIC in service aces per set with 0.29. 

1,000 Career Digs Club: Junior libero Haley Fogarty became the 11th member to join the 1,000 career digs club at MSU after reaching the milestone on Sept.17, 2015 in a win over Winona State. Fogarty joins her sister Chelsea Fogarty and cousin Cassie Wolpern on the list. Currently the Belle Plaine, Minn. native sits with 1,195 career assists and ranks fifth on the all-time list. Haley leads the Mavericks this season with 354 digs and currently sits third in the NSIC in digs per set with 4.92
 

Rank	Name (Years Played)	Career Digs
1	Jen Jacobs (2000-03)	1,623
2	Ali Rice (2008-11)	1,342
3	Lindsay Childers (1999-2002)	1,253
4	Stef Sandstrom (2004-07)	1,199
5	Haley Fogarty (2013-Present)	1,195
6	Brittany Stamer (2008-11)	1,180
7	Nichole Rose (2000-03)	1,169
8	Cassie Wolpern (2004-06)	1,168
9	Chelsea Fogarty (2009-12)	1,161
10	Ashley Nachreiner (2005-08)	1,036
11	Jessica Ooolman (2000-03)	1,017