THIS WEEK
-The Southwest Minnesota State volleyball team (17-4 overall, 9-4 NSIC) looks to continue its late season momentum, traveling to face Sioux Falls before coming home to play No. 11 Wayne State
-The Mustangs will take on Sioux Falls Thursday at 6 p.m. before welcoming Wayne State into the PE Gym at 1 p.m. on Saturday.
 
                LAST WEEK  
-The Mustangs won a pair of home matches against Minnesota State and No. 5 Concordia-St. Paul.
-SMSU kicked off their weekend in style, defeating Minnesota State University 25-15, 25-15, 25-16 on Friday.
-Angela Young led the offensive onslaught, with 17 kills to go along with seven digs. Meg Schmidt would pace the offense with 12 kills of her own to go along with 10 assists. Payton Hjerleid's 14 digs and Emma VanHeel's three blocks would set the tone defensively, helping limit the Mavericks to only 23 kills in three sets and their lowest hitting percentage (.067) of the season. Sophie Johnson led the team with 17 assists on the night.
-SMSU closed out the weekend with authority, defeating No. 5 Concordia-St. Paul 25-22, 20-25, 25-18, 25-11 on Saturday
-Young was feeling it early and often, delivering 26 kills and 12 digs to lead the Mustangs. Schmidt added 17 kills while hitting .441 to help boost the offense. Hjerleid led the team defensively, digging out 17 attacks while adding a career-high 10 assists to help pace the offense. Johnson led the team with a career-high 26 assists
 
                SMSU AND THE NSIC IN THE POLLS  
-After a pair of dominant victories against Minnesota State and previous No. 5 Concordia-St. Paul, the Southwest Minnesota State University volleyball team (17-4) jumped a spot to No. 13 in the eighth regular season American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Top 25 Division II weekly poll released on Monday afternoon.
-SMSU is one of five NSIC schools ranked in this week's Top 25 with Concordia-St. Paul down two spots to No. 7, Winona State up two spots to No. 10, Wayne State dropping three spots to No. 11, and St. Cloud State dropping a spot to No. 14. 
 
                Young earns NSIC weekly honor
-Senior outside hitter Angela Young was named the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference Offensive Player of the Week following her performances in SMSU's 3-0 win against Minnesota State and 3-1 win against No. 5 Concordia St. Paul
-Young dazzled over the weekend, recording 43 kills, including a career-high 26 kill performance against the No. 5-ranked Golden Bears. She would finish the match with a double-double as she added 12 digs and a pair of aces.
-She also lead the way against Minnesota State on Friday, leading a ferocious offensive onslaught with 17 kills to go along with seven digs.
-She would end the weekend with 6.14 digs per set while hitting .392 and recording 19 digs. She is the first Mustang to win an NSIC weekly honor since Oct. 29, 2018, when Taylor Reiss earned co-offensive honors.
 
                SERIES HISTORY
-Sioux Falls and SMSU will meet for the 18th time, with SMSU leading the series 16-2.
-The first meeting took place in 1981, while their last meeting took place in October of 2019, when SMSU defeated Sioux Falls in three sets.
-Wayne State and SMSU will meet for the 61st time, with WSC leading the series 30-29-1
-The first meeting was in 1980 and the last meeting occurred on Nov. 5, 2019, with the Mustangs falling to WSC in three sets.
 
                FABULOUS FRESHMEN   
-SMSU has received a boost from its youth in the first 21 games this season, with nine different freshmen seeing action, and six playing in at least ten sets.
-The group is led by Emma VanHeel, who is third on the team with 175 kills, and is second on the team with 78 blocks, and Katelyn Nichols, who leads the team with 82 blocks, and is fourth on the team with 110 kills. Both VanHeel and Nichols have played in every set this season. 
-Sophie Johnson has played in 72 of 75 sets for the Mustangs, picking up 110 digs and 118 assists in 14 starts. Johnson averaged 21.5 assists per match over the weekend. She picked up a career-high 26 assists to help beat No. 5 Concordia-St. Paul on Saturday.
-Halle Jansen has played in all 21 games for SMSU, collecting 59 kills, 40 digs and 15 blocks.
-Saari Kuehl tallied four kills and a block while playing in all three sets against Minnesota State on Friday.
 
                MUSTANG MILESTONES
-Payton Hjerleid became the 21st player in school history join the 1,000 dig club on Oct. 2 against Northern State.
-Hjerleid also tied the school record for aces in a match, when she recorded eight in a sweep of Colorado School of Mines on Sept. 4
-Angela Young became the 15th player in Mustangs history to join the 1,000 kills club after her first kill on Oct. 9 against UMary.
-Young currently ranks 11th in school history with 3.26 kills per set in her career. 
-She also became the first player since 2018 to earn NSIC offensive player of the week honors with 43 kills and 6.13 kills per set against Minnesota State and No. 5 Concordia-St. Paul on Oct. 22-23.
-Meg Schmidt recorded a rare feat, collecting a triple-double with 15 kills, 13 digs, and 11 assists against UMary on Oct. 9. 
-Schmidt is one of 32 players in the nation to record a triple-double this season, and is the first player in school history to record a triple double in the last ten seasons
 
                ABOUT SOUTHWEST MINNESOTA STATE   
-The Mustangs opened the season with 11 straight victories, the second longest streak to start a season in program history
-SMSU beat Minnesota State for the first time since Oct. 27, 2018, while defeating Concordia-St. Paul for the first time since Oct. 26, 2018. 
-Angela Young leads the Mustangs with 319 kills and 4.25 kills per set, with Meg Schmidt contributing 262 kills on a .332 hitting percentage.
-The defense is anchored by Payton Hjerleid, who leads the team with 310 digs and Katelyn Nichols, who leads the Mustangs with 82 blocks. 
 
                ALL AROUND
-SMSU can be found all over the top 70 in national statistics
-SMSU ranks 11th in the country in hitting percentage with a .267 percentage, and is 15th in the country in kills per set with a 13.95 average.
-The Mustangs also rank 33rd in opponents hitting percentage, limiting the opposition to a microscopic .134 percentage.
-The defense has also been a strength thanks to the 28th most blocks per set and 36th most total blocks in the nation. 
-The service line has also been a strength for SMSU, ranking 43rd in aces per set at 1.92, while the attack has been lifted with the 37th best assists per set total in the country with 12.41.
 
                MUSTANGS ON THE LEADERBOARDS
-Five separate players find themselves in the top 80 across the NCAA leaderboards five weeks into the season.
-Angela Young slots in 10th in kills per set, 12th in kills, 12th in points per set, and 54th in total attacks.
-Meg Schmidt currently ranks 37th in points per set, 67th in kills, 71st in kills per set and 79th in hitting percentage.
-She also is one of 29 players in the nation to record a triple-double.
-Katelyn Nichols ranks 35th in blocks per set, and is 39th in total blocks. 
-Emma VanHeel is 60th in blocks, while ranking 64th in blocks per set.
-Rachel Fink ranks 80st in total aces
 
                Sioux falls PREVIEW
2021 Record: 13-8, 8-5
Head Coach: Dan Mathews, first season
Mascot: Cougars
Sioux Falls Notes
-The Cougars went 1-1 on the week, getting swept by then No. 5 Concordia-St. Paul on Friday before taking down Minnesota State in three sets. 
-Sioux Falls is 13-8 on the season and 1-3 against ranked teams.
-The Cougars were picked to finish 11th in the NSIC Preseason Coaches Poll
-Sioux Falls is led by Avery Yakisch, who has tallied 330 kills and 188 digs in 21 matches this season, and Jordan Kuper, who leads the team with 80 blocks.
 
                WAYNE STATE PREVIEW
2021 Record: 17-4, 10-3
Head Coach: Scott Kneifl, 17th season
Mascot: Wildcats
AVCA Ranking: 11
Wayne State Notes
-The Wildcats went 1-1 last week, defeating Upper Iowa in three sets on Friday before dropping a five-set thriller to then No. 12 Winona State on Saturday
-WSC has begun the season 17-4, and is 4-4 against ranked teams.
-The Wildcats were picked to finish tied for fifth in the NSIC Preseason Coaches Poll
-WSC is led by Kelsie Cada, who has tallied 231 kills and 214 digs in 21 matches this season, and Alaina Wolff, who leads the team with 225 digs.
 
                ON THE HORIZON
-The Mustangs will travel to Sioux Falls, S.D. to take on Augustana on Tuesday, Nov. 2 at 6 p.m. before heading to face Minnesota Duluth on Friday, Nov. 5 at 6 p.m. and to St. Cloud to face the Huskies at 2 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 6. 
 
                2021 OUTLOOK
-The Mustangs look to reach the NSIC tournament for the first time since 2018 after being narrowly edged out by strength of schedule points index in 2019.
-Senior outside hitter Angela Young, who earned All-NSIC first team honors in 2019, returns this season after leading the team with 420 kills in 2019. Young also garnered CoSIDA Academic All-District honors.
-Junior right-side hitter Meg Schmidt is back after amassing 328 kills and 62 blocks en route to All-NSIC second team honors.
-Junior setter Alisa Bengen also returns after ranking second on the squad two seasons ago with 538 assists. 
-Senior Payton Hjerleid will help anchor the defense after recording a team-high 426 digs in 2019, while junior outside hitter Rachel Fink amassed 256 digs and recorded 116 kills.
 
                THE TERRY CULHANE FILES
-Terry Culhane, the all-time wins leader in program history, is in his 18th season as head coach and has an overall record of 426-117, including 253-60 in NSIC play.
-The four-time NSIC Coach of the Year, Culhane has never led SMSU to a losing season, a resume that includes a 30-win season, and 11 other seasons with at least 25 wins.
-SMSU has won NSIC Tournament titles in 2012 and 2017 and has won a pair of NSIC regular season championships in 2012 and 2016.  
-SMSU has played in 15 NCAA Tournaments during Culhane's time with the Mustangs, including a NCAA National Championship appearance in 2014
-SMSU's fourth head coach, Culhane spent 23 seasons (1979-2003) as a high school basketball and volleyball coach around the state of Minnesota, including his final four seasons coaching volleyball at Marshall High School, appearing in three state tournaments.
-Culhane ranks 16th among active DII coaches in win percentage, while ranking 26th in wins
-Culhane's complete bio is found on page 11.