Mankato, Minn. – The Minnesota State University volleyball team will open its conference and home schedule Thursday against Winona State at Taylor Center. First serve for the match is scheduled for 7 p.m. Later in the week, the Mavericks will travel to Fayette, Iowa to take on Upper Iowa on Saturday. First serve is set for 3 p.m.

MSU has wrapped up its nonconference schedule for the season and finished with a 6-2 overall record. 

Concerning Winona State:  The Warriors are coached by second year head coach Joe Getzin. In his first season at the helm, Getzin helped guide the Warriors to a 19-8 overall record and a 14-6 NSIC record which was good enough for a fifth place finish.

Thursday's match will mark as the 61st all-time meeting between both teams as Minnesota State owns a 46-14 all-time record over the Warriors. However, WSU has the last laugh in the all-time series, as the Warriors swept (25-18, 25-23, 26-24) the Mavericks in Winona last season. 

This season WSU stands with a 6-1 overall record and is coming off of four straight sweep wins last weekend at the Rockhusrt Classic in Kansas City, Mo. The Warriors defeated Pittsburg State, McKendree, Christian Brothers and Henderson State. In this weeks AVCA Coaches Poll, the Warriors are receiving 32 votes.

As a team the Warriors own a .271 attack percentage which places them third in the NSIC and are holding their opponents to a .165 attack percentage. WSU sits in first in the NSIC in service aces per set as the Warriors have tallied 1.80 a set with a total of 45.

WSU is led by sophomore outside hitter Danielle Rampart who is coming off an impressive 2014 season where she not only earned 2014 All-NSIC first-team honors but also garnered AVCA Central Region Freshman of the Year honors. 

So far through seven matches Rampart has collected 72 kills and 13 total blocks, with a .314 attack percentage and nine service aces. Sophomore outside hitter Taylor Goar has also posted 72 kills this season and leads the team with 12 service aces, which places her second in the NSIC in aces per set at 0.55.

Iowa State transfer Maria Fruechte isn't too far behind with 63 kills of her own and has also tallied 13 total blocks. Sophomore middle blocker Lauren Kudronowicz has added 53 kills and a team-leading 22 total blocks, while junior libero Jamie Cairncross leads the Warriors with 97 digs. Sophomore setter McKenna Larsen leads the team with 223 assists (10.14 per set), while also recording 46 kills and a .402 attack percentage which places her sixth in the NSIC.

Concerning Upper Iowa: The Peacocks currently stand at 6-3 on the season and recently beat Minot State and St. Cloud State last weekend at their Peacock Open. UIU's head coach is Aaron Nelson who is now in his fourth season at the helm.

Saturday's matchup will mark as the 17th all-time meeting between the two schools as MSU owns a 16-0 all-time record over the Peacocks. The Mavericks squared off with the Peacocks twice last season and MSU defeated UIU in both matches in four sets.

This season UIU is averaging a .212 attack percentage while its opponents own a .169 attack percentage. The Peacocks average 12.7 kills and 11.5 assists per set, while their opponents put up 12.3 kills and 11.7 assists per set. Upper Iowa ranks last in the NSIC in blocks per set with 1.27, while its opponents place fourth with 1.42 a set.

The Peacocks are led by senior outside hitter Jennifer Mundt who currently leads the NSIC in total kills with 143 and places third in the conference in kills per set with 4.47. Mundt has also collected 66 digs, 12 total blocks and four service aces on the year.

Senior defensive specialist Taylor Williams leads the team with 150 digs and is averaging 4.55 a set which ranks her eighth in the NSIC. Senior Jenna Hemsen leads UIU with 259 assists and is averaging 8.41 a set, while junior outside Kelsey Hinrichs leads the Peacocks with 11 service aces.

From Last Week: The Mavericks went 2-2 last week as they took part in the Flyer Festival in Romeoville, Ill. which was hosted by Lewis University.

MSU split both days of action as it suffered its first loss of the season to Maryville in five sets. The Mavericks were able to rebound quickly later that day as they swept Malone University.

On day two of action, MSU began the day with another sweep win over Ohio Dominican but however fell to the host school Lewis by way of a sweep.

Through the four matches the Mavericks averaged a .240 attack percentage as MSU held its opponents to a .146 attack percentage. MSU accumulated 58 service errors over last weekend while its opponents committed just 26 service errors.

Off to a Hot Start: Junior middle blocker Krista Hassing is continuing to build off her impressive sophomore season. Hassing once again led MSU over the weekend with 68 kills and 14 total blocks. She averaged 4.86 kills a set, which was a NSIC best for the week.

For the season, the Blue Earth, Minn. native leads the conference in kills per set at 4.96 and is second in the NSIC in total kills with 139.  Hassing also sits in seventh in the NSIC in blocks per set as she is averaging 1.14 a set. So far this season she has accumulated 32 total blocks, including nine solo blocks.

First Time Action: Freshman outside hitter Nevena Vukomanovich saw her first action in a Maverick uniform this past weekend at the Flyer Festival. Vukomanovich played in three of the matches and nine total sets. The Maplewood, Minn native collected nine kills, six digs and two service aces over the weekend, including eight kills against Maryville.

Receiving Votes: In the latest American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) top-25 poll, the Mavericks dropped a bit after posting a 2-2 record last weekend. MSU is receiving seven votes this week.

Statistically Speaking: Through eight matches, MSU is averaging a .265 attack percentage, while its opponents are averaging just a .141 percentage. The Mavericks currently rank fourth in the NSIC in attack percentage and assists per set (13.32) and fifth in kills per set (14.07) and in blocks per set (2.29).

Moving on Up: Back on Oct. 4, 2014 against Bemidji State,  senior Ellie Van De Steeg became the sixth MSU player to join the 3,000 career assist club. Van De Steeg moved up to fourth place on the MSU career assists list this past weekend after posting 150 assists. The Hutchinson, Minn native currently sits with 3,900 career assists and ranks sixth in the NSIC this season in assists per set with 11.43.
 

Rank	Player	Career Assists
1	Brittany Stamer (2008-11)	4,718
2	Jen Blendermann (1999-2002)	4,367
3	Heidi Schnagl (1991-94)	3,963
4	Ellie Van De Steeg (2012-Present)	3,900
5	Nicole Roething (1995-98)	3,804
6	Stef Sandstrom (2004-07)	3,471

Milestone In Reach: After posting 70 digs this past weekend, junior libero Haley Fogarty currently sits just nine career digs away from reaching the 1,000 career dig club at MSU. If she happens to reach the milestone, she will become the 11th member to join the exclusive club and would join her older sister Chelsea Fogarty who played for the Purple and Gold from 2009-12.

This season Fogarty is averaging 5.36 digs a set which places her third in the NSIC. 

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