DULUTH, Minn. – The St. Scholastica volleyball team will take part in its first NCAA Tournament match on Friday when it face the College of Saint Benedict in Moorhead, Minn.
Match Time:
Friday vs. College of Saint Benedict – 12:30 p.m. (Memorial Auditorium)
GameDay Media:
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Last Action:
The Saints defeated rival Northwestern College in the UMAC Tournament championship on Saturday night in four sets.
Anna Zyvoloski (Sauk Rapids, Minn./St. Cloud Cathedral HS (Minn.-Duluth)) had 15 kills to lead the Saints.
Nikki Hughes (Lake Nebagamon, Wis./Northwestern HS) was named the UMAC Tournament's Most Valuable Player.
St. Scholastica Saints (26-6, 13-1 UMAC)
The Saints enter the Central Regional in Moorhead on a season-best 12-match winning streak … During that span, CSS has swept eight opponents and rallied from two sets down to win in five sets twice … The Saints finished unbeaten at home this season (10-0) for the first time since the 2005 season and that year they only played three home matches … Of the eight teams at the regional, the Saints have played six of them, accumulating a record of 5-5 … CSS split with its first round opponent St. Ben's with each team winning in four sets … The Saints won on a neutral court, while St. Ben's on its home court …
Anna Zyvoloski (Sauk Rapids, Minn./St. Cloud Cathedral HS (Minn.-Duluth)) leads the Saints in kills (453) and aces (42), while being second in digs (401) and total blocks (79) …
Paige Hardy (Hibbing, Minn./Hibbing HS) is second on the team in kills (346) and third in digs (290) …
Sarah Kurtovich (Andover, Minn./Andover HS) is averaging 8.1 assists per set and
Nikki Hughes (Lake Nebagamon, Wis./Northwestern HS) is averaging 3.92 digs per set.
Notable NCAA Leaders: Team: 15th in Hitting Pct. (.263), 23rd in Assists/Set (11.86); Anna Zyvoloski (Sauk Rapids, Minn./St. Cloud Cathedral HS (Minn.-Duluth)): 20th in Points/Set (4.77), 23rd in Kills/Set (3.97).
College Saint Benedict Blazers (18-12, 8-3 MIAC)
Location: Saint Joseph, Minn.
Conference: Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
Notables: St. Ben's will be making its fourth NCAA Tournament appearance in the last five seasons and its 16th overall … The Blazers are just 2-7 against teams in the regional … The Blazers have three players with over 300 kills this season … Chelsie Sobiak leads the way with 342 kills … Alexa Rinde is right behind her with 330 kills … St. Ben's comes in having lost four of its last six matches with its only two victories coming against Gustavus Adolphus … In the two matches vs. CSS, the Saints had the exact same attack percentage (.228) in each match, but the Blazers had a .255 attack percentage in the win and .173 in the loss.
Notable NCAA Leaders: Team: 4th in Assists/Set (12.33), 9th in Kills/Set (13.29)
Last Meeting: (CSS All-Time Record vs. St. Ben's: 15-6)
The Saints fell in four sets to the Blazers at the CSB Tournament.
University of St. Thomas Tommies (29-4, 10-1 MIAC)
Location: St. Paul, Minn.
Conference: Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
Notables: The Tommies will be making their seventh consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance and the 13th time overall … St. Thomas is 5-2 against teams in the regional … The Tommies had a 16-match win streak came to an end with a loss to Concordia in the MIAC Title game Saturday night … Kelly Foley leads the team with 405 kills and Jill Greenfield is second with 335 kills.
Notable NCAA Leaders: Team: 2nd in Assists/Set (12.66), 4th in Kills/Set (13.75), 19th in Hitting Pct. (.258); Ashley Maher: 1st in Assists/Set (11.5); Kaitlain Wachler: 23rd in Digs/Set (5.86)
Last Meeting: (CSS All-Time Record vs. St. Thomas: 5-8)
The Saints were swept by the Tommies in the championship match of the Augsburg Tournament.
University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire Blugolds (22-12, 7-1 WIAC)
Location: Eau Claire, Wis.
Conference: Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
Notables: The Blugolds will be making their seventh straight NCAA Tournament appearance … Eau Claire earned an at-large bid after finishing in third place of the WIAC Tournament this past weekend … The Blugolds have played in 14 matches against teams in this year's championships bracket and holds a 5-9 record … The Blugolds are led by WIAC Player of the Year Liz Amici, who has 346 kills this season and had a league-best .346 hitting percentage … The Blugolds enter having won 13 of their last 14 matches.
Notable NCAA Leaders: Emily Neave: 18th in Assists/Set (10.47); Liz Amici: 23rd in Blocks/Set (1.18).
Last Meeting: (CSS All-Time Record vs. UW-Eau Claire: 4-20)
The Saints defeated the Blugolds in five sets at the Augsburg Tournament.
Northwestern College Eagles (27-6, 13-1 UMAC)
Location: St. Paul, Minn.
Conference: Upper Midwest Athletic Conference
Notables: The Eagles are making their second consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance after giving St. Olaf it could handle a year ago … The Eagles won a share of the UMAC regular season title and earned an at-large bid into this year's field … Northwestern is 5-4 against teams in the regional with two of the four coming against St. Scholastica … Chelsea Koth leads the team with 454 kills, while Greta King is second with 388 kills … The Eagles enter the regional alternating wins and losses over their last eight matches.
Notable NCAA Leaders: Team: 8th in Assists/Set (12.21), 10th in Kills/Set (13.28), 12th in Blocks/Set (2.33), 30th in Hitting Pct. (.246); Krista Stoltz: 2nd in Assists/Set (11.3); Courtney Jonas: 29th in Blocks/Set (1.13)
Last Meeting: (CSS All-Time Record vs. Northwestern: 43-41-1)
The Saints defeated the Eagles in four sets to capture the UMAC Tournament title.
Bethel University Royals (22-9, 8-3 MIAC)
Location: St. Paul, Minn.
Conference: Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
Notables: The Royals will be making their first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2007 and their fourth overall … The Royals are 2-5 against other teams in the regional this season with victories over Concordia-Moorhead and St. Ben's … Amy Werner and Caitie Helle lead the team with 344 and 342 kills respectively … The Royals come in having alternated wins and losses over their last six matches.
Notable NCAA Leaders: Team: 17th in Blocks/Set (2.27); Amy Werner: 15th in Blocks/Set (15.23)
Last Meeting: (CSS All-Time Record vs. Bethel: 5-3)
The Saints swept the Royals in Eau Claire in early September.
Concordia College-Moorhead Cobbers (25-3, 10-1 MIAC)
Location: Moorhead, Minn.
Conference: Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
Notables: The host Cobbers enter the NCAA Tournament on a 13-match win streak with its last loss coming to Bethel … This will be the eighth time in the last nine years the Cobbers have reached the NCAA Tournament … Concordia has also won 19 straight matches at home which dates back to the end of the 2009 season … This is the first time they have hosted a volleyball regional … Jenna Green leads the team with 393 kills and Katie Vohnoutka is second with 326 kills ... The Cobbers are 6-1 against other teams in the regional this season.
Notable NCAA Leaders: Team: 7th in Kills/Set (13.39), 16th in Assists/Set (12.04), 28th in Hitting Pct. (.250); Katie Vohnoutka: 12th in Hitting Pct. (.393); Jenna Green: 16th in Kills/Set (4.18), 18th in Points/Set (4.67)
Last Meeting: (CSS All-Time Record vs. Concordia-Moorhead: 1-4-1)
The last time the Saints and Cobbers met was in 2006 with Concordia coming away with a sweep.
University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point Pointers (26-7, 7-1 WIAC)
Location: Stevens Point, Wis.
Conference: Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
Notables: The Pointers are making fourth trip into the NCAA Tournament and their first since 1985 … For the first time since 1981, Stevens Point captured the WIAC regular season championship … The Pointers had an 18-match win streak snapped by UW-Whitewater in the WIAC Tournament championship on Saturday … The Pointers are led by Christina Brinkman, who has 380 kills … Sarah Wildish is second with 264 kills … Head coach Stacy White was named the WIAC Coach of the Year … UWSP is 0-4 this season against teams at the regional.
Notable NCAA Leaders: Team: 6th in Blocks/Set (2.53); Morgan Bartkowiak: Blocks/Set (1.41)
Last Meeting: (CSS All-Time Record vs. UW-Stevens Point: 3-7)
The Pointers took down the Saints in three sets last year in Stevens Point.
