Last TIME OUT
- SMSU fell to Minnesota State in five sets by scores of 25-21,19-25, 23-25, 28-26, 7-15 in Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference volleyball on Wednesday night.
- Emma VanHeel led the Mustang offense with 17 kills on .424 hitting, Leah Jones swung for 13 kills including 22 digs on defense. Karli Arkell posted 11 kills on .167 hitting with three block assists. Saari Kuel and Ashley Peltier both swung for 10 kills on the night.
- Sydney Theinsupported the attack with 52 set assists and three service aces.
- McKenzie Tolk led the defense with a match-high 32 digs. Thein chipped in on defense with 24 digs.
- SMSU posted 64 kills on .170 hitting percentage with five total blocks, while MSU swung for 72 kills on .243 hitting.
MUSTANG MACHINES
- SMSU ranks second in the NSIC in digs per set (18.61), while coming in third in assists per set (14.00) and kills per set (14.61), and ranking fourth in team hitting pct. (.251) and blocks per set (2.16).
- Senior outside hitter Saari Kuehl leads SMSU in hitting with 270 kills (3.29 per set), followed by sophomore outside hitter Leah Jones with 247 kills (3.01 per set). Senior middle blocker Emma VanHeel comes in third with 224 kills while sophomore right side hitter Ashley Peltier adds 206 kills.
- VanHeel also leads the Mustang blockers with 87 blocks.
- Redshirt freshman setter Sydney Thein anchors the offense with 962 assists (11.73 per set) while supporting the attack with 60 kills on .325 hitting. Thein adds 267 digs and 20 service aces.
- Junior libero McKenzie Tolk leads the defense with 443 digs (5.40 per set) while supporting the offense with 76 assists.
SMSU IN THE NATIONAL RANKS
- The Mustangs currently hold multiple team and individual placements amongst the weekly NCAA statistical leader boards.
- SMSU ranks third in the nation in assists per set (14.12), fourth in kills per set (14.81), and fifth in Division II in digs per set (19.32).
- The Mustangs sit at No. 9 in total assists (1,087), No. 13 in total kills (1,140), and No. 20 in total digs (1,488).
- Sydney Thein comes in at No. 5 in assists per set (11.82) and No. 7 in total assists (910), while McKenzie Tolk ranks No. 21 in digs per set (5.34) and No. 22 in total digs (411).
SERIES HISTORY
- Today will be the 24th meeting between SMSU and USF, with the Mustangs leading 19-4 in the all-time series.
- The Mustangs defeated the Cougars twice last season, sweeping USF on the road before capturing a 3-1 win at home.
- Seven of the last 10 matches have gone the way of the Mustangs.
- SMSU is 10-1 all-time at home versus USF.
MORE ON sioux falls
- USF last played on Oct. 31 suffering a 3-0 road loss to Winona State.
- Sadie Voss leads the Cougars offense with 266 kills on a .253 hitting percentage. Voss has posted 26 service aces and 30 assists in support of the offense, while helping of defense with a team-high 237 digs.
- Jordan Kuper follows behind with 199 kills and ranks first defensively with 74 total blocks.
- Elise Gillen is the anchor for the offense, putting up a team-high 523 kills while holding it down defensively with 198 digs, good enough for third on the team.
- Jordan Hamm excels on the back line with a team-high 26 service aces to go with 57 blocks at the net.
- USF is averaging 13.1 kills per set on 25.4 percent hitting while opponents average 13.1 kills per set on 21.1 percent hitting.