MANKATO, Minn. – The Minnesota State volleyball team (7-7) hosts MSU Moorhead (4-10) and Northern State (11-3) for homecoming weekend. The Mavericks play the Dragons at 6 p.m. on Friday Oct. 3 and match up against the Wolves on Saturday morning, Oct. 4 at 11 a.m.

About the Mavericks:
Minnesota State is back to .500 after winning its first two conference matches last weekend against UMary and Minot State. Senior Sophie Tietz is once again leading the Mavericks, in kills with 131 on the season thus far. Tietz also leads the team in service aces with 24, which ranks fourth in the NSIC. Junior middle blocker Kiya Durant has 106 kills and is ranked fourth in the conference in hitting percentage, hitting at a rate of .374. Durant had a stellar day against Minot State, recording a hitting percentage of .727 with nine kills.

"Her maturity and vision are rock steady. She played out of her mind offensively, we probably should have gotten her more looks," said Mavericks head coach Corey Phelps about Durant.

Durant also leads a three-headed monster defensively for the Mavericks. Durant and Tietz, along with Emily Kern have combined for 146 blocks, each ranking in the top 10 in blocks in the NSIC. Brooke Bolwerk has recorded 342 assists this season, 12^th most in the conference. Ellie Kline leads Minnesota State in digs with 215, ranking eighth in the conference.

About the Dragons:
MSU Moorhead had a tough start to its 2023 campaign, facing no. 6 St. Cloud State, no. 7 Minnesota-Duluth and no. 2 Concordia-St. Paul in its first three weeks of conference play. The Dragons are led by Bridget Witzmann offensively and defensively, recording 164 kills, 19 service aces and 141 digs this season, all team highs. Jadyn Feist and Raiah Mandell each have 22 kills to lead the Dragons. Emily Skalicky leads the team in assists with 231. The Mavericks are 28-11 all-time against MSU Moorhead. The Dragons are coached by first-year head coach, Kari Thompson.

About the Wolves:
The Wolves of Northern State have had an excellent start to their 2023 season, starting 11-3 and currently holding onto fifth place in the NSIC. The Wolves are led offensively by Morrisen Samuels and Natalia Szybinska, who have 169 combined kills on the season, both ranking in the top 15 in the conference. Keri Walker has recorded 521 assists this season, ranking sixth in the NSIC. Walker also has 20 service aces and 45 blocks. Abby Brooks leads the Wolves in blocks with 50. Abby Meister has 313 digs, the highest in the conference, averaging over six digs per set. The Mavericks have the slight advantage over Northern State all-time, leading the series 17-16. The Wolves are coached by thirteenth-year head coach, Brent Aldridge.