Last TIME OUT
- The No. 4 SMSU volleyball team came back from down two sets to stun the No. 22 Northern State Wolves in Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference volleyball on Friday evening at the SMSU PE Gym.
- With the win, SMSU runs its streak to 12 matches, the longest win streak since the 2017 season when SMSU won 16 games in a row.
- Leah Jones led the Mustang offensive unit with a career-high 19 kills on .250 hitting while tallying three blocks and an ace. Ashley Peltier followed behind with a career-high 17 kills on .452 hitting with a dig and seven block assists. Saari Kuehl and Emma VanHeel recorded 15 and 12 kills, respectively, while Karli Arkell put down 11 kills on .409 hitting.
- Sydney Thein logged a double-double setting a career-high 64 assists with 12 digs and four kills.
- McKenzie Tolk anchored the defense with 24 digs while supporting the attack with five assists. Tolk is just seven digs from reaching 1,000 in her career.
- SMSU out-hit NSU .280-.191, tallying 78 kills to the Wolves 56.
MUSTANG MACHINES
- SMSU ranks first in NSIC play in assists per set (15.17), kills per set (16.17), team hitting pct. (.313), and digs per set (22.83). The Mustangs are tied for first in the league in opponent hitting pct. (.077), while coming in fourth in service aces (1.50).
- Senior outside hitter Saari Kuehl leads SMSU in hitting at 3.61 kills per set with 137 total kills, followed by sophomore outside hitter Leah Jones with 110 kills (2.89 per set). Senior middle blocker Emma VanHeel adds 101 kills.
- VanHeel also leads the Mustang blockers with 39 blocks.
- Redshirt freshman setter Sydney Thein anchors the offense with 443 assists (11.66 per set) while supporting the attack with 35 kills on .353 hitting. Thein adds 125 digs and 10 service aces.
- Junior libero McKenzie Tolk leads the defense with 220 digs (5.79 per set) while supporting the offense with 37 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 digs per set (20.42), third in the nation in assists per set (14.16), and fourth in kills per set (14.95).
- The Mustangs sit at No. 16 in opponent hitting pct. (.121), No. 25 in total assists (538), and No. 32 in total kills (568)
- Sydney Thein comes in at No. 6 in assists per set (11.66) and No. 19 in total assists (443), while McKenzie Tolk ranks ninth in digs per set (5.79) and No. 22 in total digs (220).
SERIES HISTORY
- SMSU and MSUM will meet for the 135th time, with the Mustangs leading the series 68-46.
- The Mustangs defeated the Dragons a season ago with a sweep by scores of 25-5, 25-19, and 25-15.
- SMSU is 27-17 all-time at home against MSUM.
MORE ON MSU MOORHEAD
- MSUM last played on Sept. 27 suffering a five-set loss to Augustana. The Dragons are 0-2 on the road this season.
- Brielle Riess leads the Dragons offense in kills (97) and service aces (18).
- Emily Ramsay follows with 80 kills while ranking second on the squad with nine service aces.
- Annalise Wilson leads MSUM with 185 assists and ranks third with 79 digs.
- Kiara Olesch holds down the back line with 145 digs.
- MSUM is averaging 12.2 kills per set on 20.6 percent hitting while opponents average 12.6 kills per set on 18.6 percent hitting.