MANKATO, Minn. – The Minnesota State volleyball team (16-6, 8-6 NSIC) plays its last two matches of the 2024 regular season in the Taylor Center this weekend. First, the Mavericks will battle the top team in the NSIC, the No. 2 St. Cloud Huskies (21-2, 15-0 NSIC) on Friday, November 8 at 6 p.m. The following day, Saturday, November 9 at 3 p.m., MSU takes on the Minnesota Duluth Bulldogs (14-9, 7-8 NSIC) for Senior Day.
 
About the Mavericks
The Mavericks had a great week last week; Minnesota State defeated the No. 10 ranked Southwest Minnesota State at the Taylor Center on Wednesday in a five-set brawl, 3-2. Several Maverick players set career-highs in the match and the team put up 12 blocks, 72 kills, 68 assists and 115 digs in the win. On Saturday, the team traveled to Winona, Minn. to get its second win of the season over the Warriors, 3-1. With the win, the Mavericks take over the sixth-place spot in the conference with an 8-6 record and two wins over Winona State, who is now in seventh.
 
Seniors Emma Loveall and Brooke Bolwerk both posted career-best numbers against the Mustangs last week. Loveall tallied 23 kills in the upset win and Bolwerk assisted on 61 kills, the highest in her Maverick career.
 
Freshman Avery Klein got in on the action as well; the New Prague, Minn. native recorded 20 kills, 23 digs and four total blocks in the match, all bests in her young career. The true freshman has 207 kills this season, as well as 40 total blocks and 118 digs.
 
Middle blocker Emily Kern is coming off a great week, too. The junior posted eight total blocks in the win over Winona State, including three solos and five assists. Kern also had six blocks at the net against the Mustangs. She has 74 blocks on the season.
 
Toryn Richards, senior outside hitter, leads the team with 227 kills in 2024. She is also second in overall digs with 209. Loveall is right behind her with 217 kills in her final season on the Mavericks.
 
Bolwerk leads the squad in assists with 602 this fall. She also had 194 digs and 14 service aces. Senior libero Ellie Kline leads MSU with 298 digs.
 
Kiya Durant leads this Mavericks team in blocks with 80 in total, including 17 solo blocks.
 
Madisen Miller is the Mavericks' best server, with 27 aces this season with a 0.36 aces per set average, the tenth best in the NSIC.
 
Mavericks head coach Corey Phelps has led this team to a great start. This is his fourth season as full-time head coach; He served as the interim head coach for a year and a half before earning the head coaching job. Phelps has a 50-54 record with the Minnesota State volleyball team.
 
 
About the Huskies
The Huskies are arguably the best team in the NSIC and there is not a lot to refute that claim. SCSU is 21-2 and 15-0 in conference play this season. The team has not lost a set in its last six matches. Last weekend, the Huskies completed two sweeps over UMary and Minot State at home.
 
Former AVCA DII National Player of the Year Kenzie Foley is having another great season to close out her Husky career. The outside hitter leads the NSIC in kills with 388 in 2024. Foley is second on the Huskies in digs with 241 and third on the team in blocks with 40.
 
Keely Kurschner is the St. Cloud State leader in both digs (334) and service aces (34). Kurschner ranks third in the conference in service aces. Emma Berran ranks third in the NSIC in assists per set, as she averages 11.36 per set. In total, Berran has 886 assists on kills this season.
 
Hannah Bruskiewicz is the SCSU blocks leader, with a total of 69 blocks at the net this season.
 
Head coach Chad Braegelmann leads the St. Cloud State team from the sidelines. Braegelmann is in his 10^th season with the Huskies and in his 24^th season overall as a collegiate volleyball head coach. He has a 150-92 record with SCSU and a 435-263 record overall.
 
Minnesota State came up short against the Huskies in the last matchup. The Mavericks lost that match 3-1. St. Cloud State has a four-game win streak against MSU and is 33-25 against the Mavericks all-time.
 
 
About the Bulldogs
Minnesota Duluth has been up-and-down this season but have been playing well in the last few weeks. The Bulldogs have won five of their last six games, including a pair of sweeps against Minot State and UMary. The team is 14-9 with a 7-8 conference record.
 
Kills leader Samantha Paulson is having a great season. Paulson has 260 kills, good for fourth in the NSIC, with sixth-highest hitting percentage in the league at .354. She is also second on the team in blocks with 64 total.
 
Kaylyn Madison leads the team in both digs (403) and aces (35) in 2024; her 35 points from the service line are highest in the NSIC. Cianna Selbitschka is second on the team in kills (209) and digs (254).
 
Maddi Kealy leads the Bulldogs in assists with 516; right behind her is Ava Jones with 429. Kylie Broten is UMD's blocks leader; the junior middle has 80 blocks in 2024.
 
The Bulldogs are led by legendary coach Jim Boos, who is in his 22^nd season at the top of the UMD volleyball program. Boos boasts an all-time record of 554-122 and was named the AVCA Coach of the Year in 2004.
 
The Mavericks are 12-29 against Minnesota Duluth, however, Minnesota State has won each of the last two matches versus the Bulldogs. MSU went up to Duluth and defeated the home team in Romano Gymnasium in sweeping fashion, 3-0.