Last TIME OUT
- Ashley Peltier unloaded for 15 kills to lead the No. 7 SMSU volleyball team to a 25-21, 19-25, 25-21, 28-26 win over the Augustana Vikings in Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference volleyball on Tuesday evening at the Elmen Center.
- Peltier was the key player for the Mustangs in the win, leading the SMSU attack with a match-high 15 kills on .400 hitting while adding five block assists. Emma VanHeel followed with 12 kills on .321 hitting while adding four assists and jumping for six block assists. Saari Kuehl added 11 kills and Karli Arkell chipped in 10.
- Sydney Thein supported the offense with 43 assists and aided the attack with four kills. Thein helped on the back line with nine digs and an ace.
- McKenzie Tolk anchored SMSU defensively with a team-high 19 digs.
- SMSU out-hit AU .226-.168, tallying 61 kills to the Vikings' 53.
MUSTANG MACHINES
- SMSU ranks first in NSIC play in assists per set (14.80), second in kills per set (15.60), third in digs per set (19.04), and fourth in team hitting pct. (.274).
- Senior outside hitter Saari Kuehl leads SMSU in hitting with 198 kills (3.47 per set), followed by sophomore outside hitter Leah Jones with 175 kills (3.07 per set). Sophomore right side hitter Ashley Peltier comes in third with 155 kills while senior middle blocker Emma VanHeel adds 148 kills.
- VanHeel also leads the Mustang blockers with 60 blocks.
- Redshirt freshman setter Sydney Thein anchors the offense with 671 assists (11.77 per set) while supporting the attack with 48 kills on .342 hitting. Thein adds 198 digs and 16 service aces.
- Junior libero McKenzie Tolk leads the defense with 310 digs (5.44 per set) while supporting the offense with 57 assists.
SMSU IN THE NATIONAL RANKS
- The Mustangs currently hold multiple team and individual placements amongst the NCAA statistical leader boards.
- SMSU ranks first in the nation in assists per set (14.43), and second in Division II in digs per set (19.93) and kills per set (15.11).
- The Mustangs sit at No. 4 in total assists (817), No. 9 in total kills (861), and No. 11 in total digs (1,115).
- Sydney Thein comes in at No. 5 in assists per set (11.77) and No. 7 in total assists (671), while McKenzie Tolk ranks No. 18 in digs per set (5.44) and No. 14 in total digs (310).
SERIES HISTORY
- Today will be the 27th meeting between SMSU and UMary, with the Mustangs leading the series 26-0.
- The teams met for the first time this season on Sept. 21, with the Mustangs sweeping the Marauders on the road.
- SMSU is 13-0 all-time against Mary in Marshall.
SMSU ON HOMECOMING WEEKEND
MORE ON UMARY
- Mary is 2-12 on the season and last played on Oct. 5 suffering a 3-0 loss to then-No. 12 Concordia-St. Paul at home. The Marauders are 0-4 on the road this season.
- Charli Blackman leads the Beavers offense with 2.62 kills per set with a team-high 131 kills and adds 17 blocks on defense.
- Gabby Caskey follows behind with 112 kills while coming in second on the team with 30 blocks.
- Kaia Sueker leads the team on the back line with 214 digs while supporting the offense with 20 assists and seven service aces.
- Maddy Freed leads UMary with 458 assists while supporting the attack with 11 kills and 16 service aces.
- UMary is averaging 10.6 kills per set on 14.0 percent hitting while opponents average 13.3 kills on 23.7 percent hitting.