Complete Release

MARSHALL, MINN.:  The No. 9 ranked Southwest Minnesota State volleyball team is set for its home opener this weekend when it hosts Minnesota State, Mankato  Saturday at the PE Gym at 4 p.m.

Conference time:  The Mustangs are perfect in conference play thus far after picking up a win at Wayne State (Neb.) on Tuesday.  SMSU's 1-0 conference record ties them with Concordia-St. Paul for first place in NSIC.

Long-time coming:  SMSU's victory at Wayne State (Neb.) was its first win at the loud Rice Arena since 2003.  The heckling from Wildcat fans, however, did not seem to faze the Mustangs as they won in three straight sets.

Mustang territory:  Volleyball is back at the PE Gym, a place notorious for packing the house.  Last season, SMSU ranked second in NCAA Division II in home attendance with a total of 9,220 spectators over 13 home dates.  That's an average of 709 per match.

Best year ever:  The Mustangs are off to their best start in school history.  SMSU's 12-1 record heading into its match against Minnesota State has trumped any start by a Mustang volleyball squad since the sport was introduced at the school in 1971.

Kasey's killin' it:  Kasey Loeslie (Tracy, Minn.) has been on an absolute tear from her middle blocker position.  The senior had a spectacular showing at the Concordia-St. Paul Classic last weekend, killing a total of 58 balls (4.14/set) to help the Mustangs to a 4-0 record.  Loeslie's best performance came against No. 5 Truman State when the she had 20 kills.    Those numbers earned her NSIC Player of the Week honors.  Her 17 kills against Wayne State (Neb.) on Tuesday was a match-high.   She now sits at fourth in the NSIC in hitting percentage with .333 and sixth in kills with 163 (3.4/set).

In the mix:  Besides Loeslie, the Mustangs as a team and several players individually are among the top in their respective categories in the NSIC.  SMSU is second in the conference in hitting percentage at .241.  Sara Graf (Mt. Pleasant, Iowa) is fourth in assists with 496 (10.78/set) and third in service aces with 20 (.43/set).  And Sarah Quiram's (LeSueur, Minn.) 225 digs (4.69/set) is good for third in the conference.

Freshmen phenoms: SMSU welcomes several new faces to the team for the 2008 campaign.  Seven freshmen dot the Mustang roster for this season.  Two of them, Devin Diedrich (Braham, Minn.) and Maggie Geske (Shakopee, Minn.), have broken the starting line-up, while Brittany Wewel (Chaska, Minn.) has dug up her share of balls.

National news:  The Mustangs are ranked No. 9 in the latest CBS College Sports/AVCA Division II Coaches Top 25 Poll released Sept. 15.  The Mustangs moved up four spots from their No. 13 ranking a week ago.

How they rank: Minnesota State is unranked entering Saturday afternoon's match against the Mustangs.

Road warriors:  The Mustangs were on the road for the first 13 matches of 2008.  This included three tournaments to open the season.  After the Nova Southeastern Classic, SMSU traveled to Colorado Springs, Colo., for the Colorado-Colorado Springs Classic followed by the Concordia Classic in St. Paul, Minn.  Finally, the Mustangs were on the road against Wayne State (Neb.) before hosting Minnesota State on Sept. 20.

He's back: Terry Culhane returns for his fifth year as the head coach of SMSU.  Culhane boasts a 113-36 record as the leader the Mustangs.  He's 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 Mavericks are coached by Dennis Amundson (fourth season, 53-45) ... currently have record of 5-7 ... finshed 19-9 last season ... playing their first season in the NSIC ... former members of the NCC ... ranked as high as No. 12 last season, but have failed to break the top 25 in 2008 ... led by senior outside hitter Ashley Nachreiher, who has 170 kills (3.70/set) and 142 digs (3.09/set) this season and junior setter Krissy Timmer, who has 397 assists (8.82/set) ...



The Mavericks lead the series against the Mustangs 11-26.  The two teams last met in the 2007 NCAA Tournament; SMSU won the match 3-2.  The Mustangs have won the last three meetings.