(Download Postseason Media Guide)

MARSHALL, MINN. - The No. 7-ranked Southwest Minnesota State volleyball team received the No. 2 seed in the Central Region and will meet No. 7-seeded Metro State (Colo.) in the first round of the NCAA Tournament on Thursday at 2:30 p.m. in St. Paul, Minn.

Northern sunshine:  After picking up two conference wins this past weekend against Mary and Northern State, the Mustangs finished the regular season with a 27-5 record and 16-4 mark in the NSIC--good for second place in the conference.   

Seasoned postseasoners:  The Mustangs are no strangers to the postseason, having qualified for the NCAA tournament the past four years.  Add to that an appearance back in 2001, and SMSU has its fair share of experience playing in the postseason.  Head coach Terry Culhane doesn't even know what it's like to not be in postseason play as the head coach has qualified his squads in each of his five seasons at SMSU.

It's been so long:  The last time SMSU played MSC was back in 1988, losing to the Roadrunners 3-0.  The meeting was part of the MSC tournament.  To put things into perspective, the last time SMSU and MSC squared off, George Michaels sat atop the pop music charts with his hit “Faith.”

Two degrees of separation:  While the Mustangs  haven't played the Roadrunners in two decades, they have played a few teams that met up with MSC this season.  The Roadrunners defeated three teams SMSU also beat in Colorado-Colorado Springs, Mesa State (Colo.) and Adams State (Colo.), but they lost to Augustana 3-2 back in September.  SMSU beat Augustana 3-0 on Sept. 12 and Oct. 24.

Been there, done that:  Concordia-St. Paul took the No. 1 seed in the Central Region, claiming rights to host the first three rounds of the NCAA tournament.  CU's Gangelhoff Center is a place SMSU is quite familiar with as the Mustangs have already played five matches at the venue this season.  The trek up to St. Paul might work in the Mustangs' favor, too; MSC will have about a 900-mile trip to Concordia.

Honor roll:   Four players were honored by the NSIC last week, getting nods for NSIC All-Conference.  Sarah Quiram (LeSueur, Minn.), Sara Graf (Mount Pleasant, Iowa) and Kasey Loeslie (Tracy, Minn.) all received first team honors, while Devin Diedrich (Braham, Minn.) was an honorable selection honoree.  Diedrich was also named the NSIC Freshman of the Year, an award going to the conference's top newcomer.

Senior moments:  A trio of Mustang seniors are hitting the home stretch of their careers at SMSU.  Quiram, Loeslie and Laura Hegerle (Dodge Center, Minn.) are all in their final seasons as Mustangs.  All three have all been with the team for at least three NCAA tournament appearances.

National news:  The Mustangs are ranked No. 7 in the latest Bison/AVCA Division II Coaches Top 25 Poll released Nov. 17.  The Mustangs moved up one spot from their No. 8 ranking a week ago.  SMSU's highest ranking of the year, and in school history, was No. 3, coming back on Oct. 27, 2008.

How they rank: MSC is unranked heading into Thursday afternoon's match.

Best year ever:  The Mustangs finished their 2008 campaign with the best regular season record in school history.  SMSU's 27-5 mark is the most regular season wins by a Mustang volleyball squad since the school joined the NCAA in 1995.  SMSU's best year prior to the 2008 season was in 2006 when the Mustangs posted a regular season record of 26-7.

He's back: Terry Culhane returns for his fifth year as the head coach of SMSU.  Culhane boasts a 128-40 record as the leader the Mustangs.  He has led his teams to four straight NCAA tournament appearances, including a trip to the regional semifinals last  year.  Culhane is assisted by Jessica Schumacher (second season), Paul Soupir (fifth season) and Mike Dalager (sixth season).


The Roadrunners are coached by Debbie Hendricks (ninth season, 197-83) ... finished 2008 regular season with 18-8 record (16-3 RMAC) ... enter Central Region tournament with No. 7 seed ... lost in first round of the RMAC tournament to Colorado School of Mines ... making ninth straight NCAA tournament appearance ... hitting .216 as a team ... freshman outside hitter Bri Morley leads the Roadrunners in kills with 292 (3.24/set) ... junior outside hitter Amanda Cook is second on the team in kills with 250 (2.69/set) ... freshman setter Darcy Schwartzman directs the MSC offense and has recorded 829 assists (8.29/set) so far this season ... junior defensive specialist/libero Amy Watanabe anchors the Roadrunner defensive effort and has compiled 314 digs (3.17/set) ... the Roadrunners lead the series between the two schools 1-0 ... inaugural and last meeting was in 1988.
Potential Region Tournament Opponents:

Minnesota Duluth:  24-8 (15-5 NSIC) ... ranked No. 15 in nation ... lost to SMSU 3-0 on Sept. 6 ... defeated SMSU 3-0 Oct. 31 ... 14.1 kills/set as a team ... 13.4 assists/set as a team ... 15.7 digs/set as a team.

Wayne State:  23-9 (12-8 NSIC) ... ranked No. 24 in nation ... lost to SMSU 3-2 on Sept. 16 and 3-1 on Oct. 25 ... 13.7 kills/set as a team ... 12.6 assits/set as  team ... 16.8 digs/set as  team.

Augustana:  23-10 (15-5 NSIC) ... ranked No. 22 in nation ... lost to SMSU 3-0 on Sept. 12 and Oct. 24 ... 14.4 kills/set as a team ... 13.6 assists/set as a team ... 17.6 digs/set as team.

Nebraska-Kearney:  31-3 (17-1 RMAC) ... ranked No. 9 in nation ... last played SMSU in 2005, winning 3-1 ... 13.9 kills/set as team ... 13.0 assists/set as team ... 16.0 digs/set as a team.

Concordia-St. Paul:  30-1 (20-0 NSIC) ... ranked No. 1 in nation ... defeated SMSU 3-0 on Sept. 23 and 3-1 on Oct. 18 ... 15.3 kills/set as a team ... 14.7 assists/set as a team ... 16.6 digs/set as a team.

Regis (Colo.):  19-11 (12-7 RMAC) ... last played SMSU in 2007, losing 3-2 ... 12.9 kills/set as a team ... 11.8 assists/set as a team ... 14.7 digs/set as a team.