DULUTH, Minn. (
csssaints.com) – The St. Scholastica volleyball team heads to Mankato on Friday for an Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) triangular against Bethany Lutheran College and No. 12 University of Northwestern (Minn.).
Where:
North Gymnasium – Mankato, Minn.
When:
Friday
at Bethany Lutheran – 3 p.m.
vs. #12 Northwestern – 5 p.m.
Live Video: https://iframe.dacast.com/b/51317/c/78199
Live Stats: http://livestats.blc.edu/
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St. Scholastica Saints
Stats
Record: 4-10, 2-2 UMAC
Upper Midwest Athletic Conference: Standings | Stats
Last Action: The Saints went 1-1 on Tuesday in Superior, falling to rival University of Wisconsin-Superior in four sets and then sweeping Northland College in the second match …
Brooke Elvehjem (Mora, Minn./Mora HS) had a career-high 13 kills against the Yellowjackets …
Espi Austvold (Spicer, Minn./New London-Spicer HS) also had a career-high 46 assists against UWS …
Christaia Houser (Esko, Minn./Homeschool) led the Saints against the LumberJills with 12 kills …
Madissen Burns (Watertown, Minn./Watertown-Mayer HS) and
Emily Bounds (Hill City, Minn./Hill City HS) each added nine kills … It was the 14
th straight sweep over Northland for CSS.
Picking up the Offense: The Saints have had their top four matches when it comes to kills in the last five contests … The Saints had 49 kills against UWS on Tuesday and that came after Saturday's two matches where they 47 and 44 kills vs. Martin Luther College and Crown College, respectively … CSS ranks third in the conference in team hitting percentage (.168).
Conference Triangulars: New this year around the conference is scheduling conference triangulars … Teams are playing 16 league matches this season and to allow for scheduling flexibility schools will be playing four UMAC triangulars during the first month of the season.
Multiple Match Struggles: In the last 17 instances where the Saints played two matches on a day, CSS has swept both matches one time and that was last season when it defeated Martin Luther and Hamline University at home … During that span, CSS has split 10 times and have been swept six times.
Houser Nearing 500: Christaia Houser (Esko, Minn./Homeschool) is 17 kills shy of 500 for her career … She has recorded over 120 kills each of her first three seasons and already has 108 kills this year.
2017 UMAC Volleyball Preseason Coaches' Poll
1. Northwestern – 64 points (8 First Place Votes)
2. Minnesota Morris – 56 (1 First Place Vote)
3. St. Scholastica – 50 points
4. Martin Luther – 42 points
5. Bethany Lutheran – 34 points
6. Wisconsin-Superior – 33 points
7. North Central – 16 points
8. Northland – 15 points
9. Crown – 14 points
Upcoming Opponents
Bethany Lutheran Vikings
Record: 5-9, 1-3 UMAC
The Vikings have been swept in their last three matches … The lone conference victory was in the league opener at home against North Central University (Minn.) … Bethany leads all UMAC teams with 112 service aces on the year … Three different players have at least 20 aces on the year … Megan Rutt is the team's leading hitter with 150 kills … Anna Nelson ranks fourth in the conference with 4.06 digs per set … Jasmine Carlson is second in the league with 7.59 assists per set.
No. 12 Northwestern Eagles
Record: 11-3, 5-0 UMAC
The Eagles have had a stranglehold on the conference since the Saints won the league in 2011 … Last year, Northwestern advanced to the NCAA Division III National Semifinals, marking the deepest run of any UMAC team in any sport in a NCAA Tournament … The Eagles enter Friday's matches on a six-match winning streak, with five of those wins coming by sweeps … Northwestern ranks second in the nation in kills per set (14.22) and leads all UMAC teams in hitting percentage (.260), blocks per set (1.87) and digs per set (17.0) … Defensively, it also leads the conference in opponent hitting percentage (.116), fewest opponent kills (9.84) and fewest opponent service aces (0.93) … The reigning national player of the year Lindsey Peterson ranks second in the country averaging 5.67 points per set … Kayla Tanner ranks second in blocks per set (1.0) and Jackie Doering is second in digs per set (5.1) … Freya Hanson leads all conference players with 0.53 service aces per set.
Series Records:
-CSS leads BLC 19-8
(Last Meeting: 3-1 CSS – 9/30/2016)
-UNW leads CSS 54-43-1
(Last Meeting: 3-0 UNW – 10/22/2016)
Series Histories: The Saints have won 16 straight against Bethany Lutheran with 13 of those 16 matches ending in sweeps /// Northwestern has won 13 straight against the Saints, including both matches last year in sweeps … This will be the third straight meeting where the Eagles will be ranked when facing the Saints … CSS is 6-5 all-time vs. Northwestern in neutral site meetings.
Looking Ahead: The Saints will have a non-conference match at the College of Saint Benedict on Tuesday at 7 p.m.
