MANKATO, Minn. --- The Minnesota State volleyball team will take to the road to compete with Northern State in the first round of the NSIC tournament after finishing the regular season seventh in the conference.  

Mavericks at a Glance: The Mavericks enter the week with an 18-10 (11-9 NSIC) overall record after beating Wayne State and Augustana last weekend, ensuring the team would  return to the postseason after finishing outside the top eight last year.  

Second Meeting:  This match against Northern State is the second time this season that Minnesota State will travel to Aberdeen, S.D., to face the Wolves.  In the first match, Northern State came away with a 3-1 win (21-25, 25-23, 25-13, 25-18), after the Mavericks took the first set.  The Wolves held the advantage in kills 56-51, but Minnesota State earned 13 blocks to only six for Northern State.  In the match Morgan Olson led all players with 21 kills while Micayla Porter recorded 33 assists, and Mara Quam led all players in digs with 20.  

Record Performance:  Sophomore libero Mara Quam broke the Minnesota State record for digs in a season, which was 480, held by Alli Rice and Haley Fogerty, and currently has 529 on the season.  

Impact Mavericks: Morgan Olson leads the Mavericks with a team best 450 kills and a .379 attacking percentage.  Olson is closing in the single season kills record for Minnesota State which stands at 499 set by Kris Wolle in 1999.  Alivia Garbe has the second most kills for Minnesota State with 324, and is also second on the team in digs with 300 on the season.  Mara Quam has compiled 529 digs this season, and Micayla Porter leads the teams in assists with 680.

By the Numbers: As a team this season, Minnesota State has posted 13.5 kills per set in comparison to its opponents 11.8.  Additionally, the Mavericks add 13.0 assists per set and 14.9 digs per set.  

Young Talent: The freshman class has contributed 259 digs, 547 assists, 141 kills and 52 blocks this season. Freshman Lauren Lowry is second on the team with 534 assists and Dana Schindler is fifth on the team with 131 kills.

Scouting Northern State:  Northern State is located in Aberdeen, S.D., and is a member of the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC).  The Wolves are 25-3 (17-3 NSIC) so far this season. Northern State is led by head coach Brent Aldridge, who is in his eighth season with the Wolves.

As a team this season, Northern State posts 14.5 kills per set while their opponents average 11.3. The Wolves also total 13.7 assists per set and 16.8 digs per set. 

Senior Hailey Busch leads Northern State in kills with 373 on the season and sophomore Laura Snyder has 301.  Junior Ashley Rozell is the Wolves primary setter and leads the team with 1221 assists.  Junior Jaiden Langlie is the Libero for Northern State and leads the team in digs with 445.

Looking Ahead: The winner of the matchup between the Mavericks and Wolves will face the winner between Southwest Minnesota State and Wayne State Friday, Nov. 9.  The site and time of the second round match is TBA.