Complete Release (PDF)

MARSHALL, Minn. - The No. 16-ranked Southwest Minnesota State volleyball team (19-7, 9-5 NSIC) is back home this weekend, hosting No. 11 Minnesota Duluth (19-4, 12-1 NSIC) on Friday at 7 p.m. and Bemidji State (9-15, 6-7 NSIC) on Saturday at 3 p.m.

Series records: Friday's meeting with UMD will be the 65th meeting between the Mustangs and Bulldogs in a series that began in 1973.  SMSU is 10-54 all-time against UMD; the Mustangs defeated the Bulldogs 3-1 earlier this season.  Saturday will mark the 81st match between SMSU and BSU in the 32-year-old series.  The Mustangs took a 3-2 decision from the Beavers earlier this season.

On the tube:  Both of this weekend's matches are being regionally broadcast by Midcontinent Communications.  SMSU's campus station, KSSU-TV, will be picking up the feed and broadcasting it on its cable channel in Marshall.  Knology customers can find KSSU on channel 99, while Charter customers should turn to channel 18. Fans can also find the feed at www.northernsun.tv.

How they rank:  UMD enters this weekend ranked No. 11 in the latest AVCA national poll, while BSU is unranked. For more about this weekend's opponents, turn to page 4.

Last weekend:  The Mustangs split a pair of conference matches on the road, picking up a 3-1 win over Augustana on Friday and falling 3-2 to then-No. 18 Wayne State on Saturday.

Breakout weekend:  Freshman Brooke Burmeister (Lakefield, Minn.) had a pair of career matches for SMSU last weekend from her outside hitter spot.  She started the weekend with a 16-kill performance (a career high at the time) against Augustana on Friday and followed it with a career-high 26-kill outing against Wayne State on Saturday.  Other weekend totals for Burmeister included one assist, two service aces, eight digs and three blocks.

Two-timer:  Freshman Kenzie Niesche (Chaska, Minn.) picked up her second NSIC Defensive Player of the Week nod of the season on Monday.  Niesche tallied a team-best 67 digs (7.44/set) for SMSU this past weekend in two conference matches. Niesche collected a career-high 37 digs against No. 18 Wayne State on Saturday and was equally effective with 30 digs against Augustana on Friday. The freshman, who was also named player of the week on Sept. 14, added three assists on the weekend. 

Region rankings:  SMSU was ranked fourth in the first Central Region rankings of 2009 released two weeks ago by the NCAA Division II Women's Volleyball Committee.  Concordia University, St. Paul took the top spot.
        Team    Overall    In-Region
    1.    Concordia-St. Paul    21-0    13-0
    2.    Minnesota State Mankato    19-2    11-0
    3.    Minnesota Duluth    16-4    13-2
    4.    Southwest Minnesota State    17-5    14-3
    5.    Nebraska-Kearney    20-1    20-0
    6.    Mesa State    12-8    12-7
    7.    Regis (Colo.)    10-8    9-6
    8.    Colorado-Colorado Springs    12-7    12-6
    9.    Wayne State (Neb.)    19-4    16-3
    10.    Metropolitan State    13-5    11-5

National news:  SMSU fell one spot and is ranked No. 16 in the latest AVCA Division II Coaches' Top 25 Poll released on Oct. 26  The Mustangs received 302 points in the poll. NSIC neighbor Concordia University, St. Paul retained the top spot in the poll.  Five NSIC teams found their way into this week's rankings.

The coach:  Terry Culhane returns for his sixth season as the head man of Mustang volleyball, and his name might as well be synonymous with success.  The SMSU alum has yet to encounter a losing season or one that he hasn't made the NCAA Tournament.  Culhane boasts a 148-48 record at SMSU.  He is assisted by Jessica Petersen, Paul Soupir, Mike Dalager, Katie Gangelhoff and Raftyn Rignell.
According to the coaches:  The NSIC's 14 head coaches tabbed SMSU fifth in their annual preseason poll.  The Mustangs received 125 points in the poll.  Concordia University, St. Paul, national champions for the past two seasons, was selected first for the sixth consecutive season with 169 points and 13 first-place votes.  Minnesota Duluth, Minnesota State and Wayne State fell in ahead of SMSU.  MSU received one first-place vote.
        Team (first place votes)    Points
    1.    Concordia-St. Paul (13)    169
    2.     Minnesota Duluth    145
    3.     Minnesota State (1)    143
    4.     Wayne State    128
    5.     Southwest Minnesota State    125
    6.     Augustana    122
    7.     Minnesota State Moorhead    99   
    8.     Winona State    82
    9.     St. Cloud State    65
    10.     Northern State    64
    11.     Bemidji State    44
    12.     Minnesota, Crookston    43
    13.     Upper Iowa    26
    14.     Mary    23

Senior momentum:  Three seniors will lead the Mustangs through the 2009 season, all with a wealth of experience.  Sara Graf (Mount Pleasant, Iowa), Leah Ashburn (Hector, Minn.) and Tory Brouwer (Maynard, Minn.) hold down the posts as this year's elders.

Stay connected:  Stay connected with SMSU volleyball all season long at www.smsumustangs.com.  The Mustangs are also on Facebook and Twitter; just log onto www.facebook.com/smsumustangs and www.twitter.com/smsumustangs.  For the latest video highlights and new episodes of the Mustang Minute check out SMSU's official YouTube channel at www.youtube.com/user/smsuathletics.

We'll do it live!:  Live statistics for all of SMSU's home games can be viewed by logging onto www.smsumustangs.com and following the live stats link on the right side of the volleyball home page.

Let's see it:  All NSIC volleyball matches are video broadcast live and free of charge on the Penn Atlantic Network.  Check out www.northernsun.tv to learn more.