MANKATO, Minn. - The No. 10 Southwest Minnesota State (9-4, 4-1 NSIC) volleyball team plays on the road for four consecutive matches beginning on Friday with a 6 p.m. match against Minnesota State (10-3, 3-2 NSIC) at the Taylor Center. SMSU then travels to Concordia-St. Paul (11-2, 5-0 NSIC) on Saturday for a 1 p.m. match at Gangelhoff Center. 
 
SMSU dropped three spots to No. 10 in the latest American Volleyball Coaches' Association (AVCA) Top-25 poll that was released on Monday. SMSU dropped its first conference match of the year in a 3-0 loss to Winona State on Friday, the second of three matches played at home last week. The Mustangs opened the homestand with a sweep over Sioux Falls and ended the weekend with a 3-1 victory over Upper Iowa on Saturday afternoon.
 
Emma Thomssen earned NSIC Setter of the Week last week, the first of the Mustangs to earn the award this season. Thomssen set a career-high 61 assists in a 3-2 victory over Wayne State on Sept. 8. Thomssen has recorded 566 assists this season, averaging 12.06 assists per set. Taylor Reiss leads the team with 256 kills so far this season. Reiss is leading the nation in kills per set (5.45), points per set (5.93), and total kills (256).  
 
Opponents at a glance 
Minnesota State -  Olson leads the Mavericks this season with 213 kills with a .414 hitting percentage and 4.35 kills per set. Mara Quam has dished out 224 digs and Micayla Porter leads in assists with 313. MSU fell in the its last match in five-sets (25-11, 25-21, 25-17, 25-21, 15-12) to Wayne State on Saturday, Sept. 15, where Alivia Garbe had a match-high 21 kills, followed by Morgan Olson with 20. 
 
Series History 
Mustangs trail the series 25-31 which began in 1971. The Mustangs longest winning streak was nine consecutive wins from 2009 to 2013. SMSU has swept Minnesota State in the last four matches. The last time the Mustangs lost was 3-1 on Oct. 25, 2014 at Minnesota State. The Mustangs lead the conference series 14-6 but trail 7-15 in away matches.
 
Opponents at a glance 
Opponents a glance 
Concordia-St. Paul is ranked No. 2 in the latest AVCA poll. Head Coach Brady Starkey earned his 500th victory in the season opener. Hope Schiller earned her 1,000 digs in a sweep of Minnesota State. Brooklyn Lewis leads CSP with 202 kills and 4.49 kills per set with a .378 hitting percentage. Hope Schiller has recorded 149 kills, Erin Fallert 105 kills, and Sara Macek 104 kills. Elizabeth Mohr paces the Golden Bears with 583 assists so far this season with 12.96 assists per set.  Tori Hanson leads CSP with 228 digs. 
 
Series History 
Southwest Minnesota State trails the series 25-35 dating back to 1976.  The two teams met already this season at the Colorado Premier Challenge championship, when CSP swept SMSU (25-16, 25-22, 25-17) to take first place. Mustangs have split even in the last four matches played, each winning and losing two. Mustangs trail 8-24 in conference play, 9-13 at home, and 12-18 away. The last Mustang victory occurred on Nov. 19, 2017 at Concordia-St. Paul.
 
Following Friday nights match at Minnesota State at 6 p.m., SMSU travels to Concordia-St. Paul for a 1 p.m. match at Gangelhoff Center.