DULUTH, Minn. (
csssaints.com) – The St. Scholastica volleyball team wraps up the regular season on Saturday with an Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) road match at Crown College.
Where:
Wild Athletic Center – St. Bonifacius, Minn.
When:
Saturday at 3 p.m.
Live Video: http://portal.stretchinternet.com/crown/
Live Stats: http://www.crown.edu/fileadmin/livestats/xlive.htm
Social Media:
Twitter:
www.twitter.com/SaintsVball
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St. Scholastica Saints
Stats
Record: 11-15, 5-2 UMAC
Upper Midwest Athletic Conference: Standings | Stats
Last Action: The Saints dominated Northland College on Senior Night Wednesday at the Reif Gymnasium … CSS swept the LumberJills with a season-high hitting percentage of .526 … In fact, that is the highest team hitting percentage since the 2001 season and the third-best since the 1996 season … The Saints also recorded 13 service aces, the most since the 2012 season …
Amanda Belden (Esko, Minn./Esko HS) led the Saints with 11 kills, followed by
Nikki Kienzle (Hermantown, Minn./Hermantown HS)'s 10 kills … Belden also recorded 10 digs for her team-best sixth double-double …
Espi Austvold (Spicer, Minn./New London-Spicer HS) had 20 assists.
Where They Stand: The Saints enter the weekend tied for third in the conference with Martin Luther College … However, the Saints may already know their seed for next week's UMAC Tournament before they get on the bus tomorrow morning as Martin Luther faces conference leader No. 18 University of Northwestern Friday night … If Martin Luther falls to the Eagles, the Saints will be the No. 3 seed … However, if the Knights win, CSS will have to defeat Crown to maintain the No. 3 seed because they own the tiebreaker … St. Scholastica could finish tied for second with the University of Minnesota Morris, but would still be the No. 3 seed because of the head-to-head tiebreaker.
Three Sets and Go Home: Each of the last eight matches for the Saints have been decided in three sets, with CSS going 4-4 in those matches … For the season, the Saints are 7-10 in three set matches.
Kessler Reaches 1,000: Senior setter
Emily Kessler (Grand Rapids, Minn./Greenway HS (Itasca CC)) went over 1,000 career assists as a Saint in Wednesday's victory over Northland … Kessler has played only two seasons at St. Scholastica appearing in 54 matches.
Leaders: In conference matches,
Christaia Houser (Esko, Minn./Homeschool) leads all UMAC players with 26 total blocks and 1.37 blocks per set …
Nikki Kienzle (Hermantown, Minn./Hermantown HS) is second in the conference with a .407 hitting percentage in conference play.
Upcoming Opponents
Crown Storm
Record: 3-22, 0-7 UMAC
The Storm will hope to finish their season on a high note on Saturday as they are winless in league play … The three wins this season for Crown have come against Northland College in non-conference play, Mount Mary College (Wis.) and Finlandia University (Mich.) … Katie Hinkle leads the team with 134 kills, while Christine Anderson has 114 kills … Kelsey Roschen is averaging 6.1 assists per set and leads the team with 21 service aces.
Series History: CSS leads 30-0
Last Meeting: The Saints have swept the Storm in 27 of the 30 total matches between the two programs, including the last five meetings.
Looking Ahead: The Saints will compete in the UMAC Tournament. If the Saints win on Saturday they will be at the University of Minnesota Morris next Wednesday for a semifinal match. If the Saints lose and Martin Luther College wins its match, the Saints will host a UMAC Tournament Opening Round match on Monday against Bethany Lutheran College.
