THIS WEEK

-The No. 22-ranked Southwest Minnesota State volleyball team opens its 2022 campaign in Golden, Colo., for the Colorado School of Mines Classic on Friday and Saturday, Aug. 26-27.

-The Mustangs will battle Western Colorado at 12:30 p.m. CDT and Colorado Christian at 5:30 CDT on Friday, Aug. 26.

-SMSU closes the classic with Colorado Mesa at 10:30 a.m. CDT before a match-up against No. 11-ranked Colorado School of Mines at 1:30 p.m. CDT, on Saturday, Aug. 27. 

-Friday will mark the head coaching debut for Tyler Boddy, who spent the previous 10 seasons as an assistant coach before being named head coach in December of 2021.

    2022 OUTLOOK

-The Mustangs look to reach the NSIC tournament for the second consecutive season, returning eight letter winners and adding seven freshmen.

-Senior right-side hitter Meg Schmidt earned All-NSIC first team and AVCA All-American honorable mention accolades in 2021 after ranking second on the squad with 334 kills, while hitting a team-high .304. She finished among top three on the team in kills (334), points (409.5), assists (129), service aces (32) and blocks (64) a season ago.

-Sophomore middle blockers Emma VanHeel and Katelyn Nichols look to build off strong freshman campaigns that saw them finish third and fourth in kills, respectively, and top two on the team in blocks.

-Senior setter Alisa Bengen also returns after ranking first on the squad with 707 assists a season ago, while senior libero/defensive specialist Rachel Fink will look to anchor the defense after collecting 195 digs a season ago while also finishing with a team-high 43 service aces.

-Sophomore outside hitter Halle Jansen played in all 29 matches last season, finishing fifth on the team in kills with 92 and in blocks with 27.

    LAST SEASON  

-The Mustangs went 21-8 in the 2021 season, going 13-7 in conference play and finishing the season ranked No. 23 in the AVCA DII Top 25 Poll.

-SMSU received the No. 8 seed in the NSIC Tournament, falling to St. Cloud State in three sets to end the season.

-The Mustangs started the season on fire, winning 11 straight matches, the second longest streak to start a season in program history, and ranked as high as No. 5 in the country.

-The 11 victories combined with four wins to end the 2019 season gave SMSU 15 straight victories, its third longest win streak in program history.

-Head coach Terry Culhane concluded his Mustang career, finishing with a 431-124 overall record and 157-34 record at home. Culhane led SMSU to 15 NCAA Tournaments, two NSIC regular season championships, two NSIC conference championships, and an NCAA National Championship Runner-Up finish in 2014.

    THE TYLER BODDY FILES  

-Tyler Boddy is in his first season as head coach at Southwest Minnesota State University after being named to the position on Dec. 17, 2021.

-Boddy, who has spent the past 10 years as an assistant coach at SMSU, becomes the fifth head coach in the program's 50-year history.

-Boddy joined the SMSU coaching staff in 2012 and since that time the program has appeared in seven NCAA tournaments, including finishing as NCAA national runners-up in 2014. SMSU has a combined record of 225-64 during his tenure which includes two Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference regular season titles and two NSIC tournament championships.

-Since joining the staff, Boddy has recruited or coached 37 All-NSIC honorees, 16 AVCA All-Americans, a three-time NSIC Player of the Year, a two-time AVCA National Player of the Year and three CoSIDA Academic All-Americans.

-For his efforts during his coaching career, Boddy was named a recipient of the Thirty Under 30 Award from the American Volleyball Coaches Association in April of 2019. He was promoted to associate head coach in the summer of 2021.

-Boddy, a native of New Ulm, Minn., came to SMSU after spending two seasons (2010-11) as an assistant coach at Wisconsin-Oshkosh and one season (2009) at Ripon College. Boddy has also had a successful coaching career in club volleyball with his Southwest Minnesota Volleyball Club teams winning national championships in 2014 and 2018.

-Boddy, a 2012 graduate of Wisconsin-Oshkosh, lives in Marshall with his wife, Alex, sons, Bronx and Wilke, and daughter, Rowan.

    SMSU TABBED SEVENTH IN NSIC PRESEASON POLL

-The Southwest Minnesota State University volleyball team was picked to finish seventh in the annual 16-team Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference Preseason Coaches' Poll

-Concordia-St. Paul was selected as the preseason favorites to win the conference earning 217 points and nine first place votes (coaches can't vote for their own school). Defending NSIC regular season and tournament champion, St. Cloud State, earned 213 points and the remaining seven first place votes to finish in second place, followed by Wayne State with 189 points, Augustana with 179 points, while Minnesota Duluth and Northern State tied for fifth place with 149 points. SMSU rounded out the top seven earning 146 points.

    SERIES HISTORY

-Western Colorado and SMSU will meet for the second time ever.

-Their only other meeting came in 1997, when the Mustangs defeated the Mountaineers in four sets.

-Colorado Christian and SMSU will meet for the fourth time in history with the Mustangs leading the series 2-1.

-The first meeting was in 1995 and the last meeting occurred in 2021 with SMSU sweeping the Cougars

-Colorado Mesa and SMSU will meet for the ninth time in history with SMSU holding a 5-3 advantage.

-The first meeting was in 1989 and the last meeting occurred in 2021 with SMSU winning in four sets, dropping set one before winning three sets in a row.

-Colorado School of Mines and SMSU will meet for the sixth time, with the Mustangs winning all five previous meetings.

-The first meeting was in 2010 and the last meeting came in 2021 with SMSU claiming victory in a sweep over the then-No. 12 ranked Orediggers.

    SMSU AND THE NSIC IN THE POLLS  

-The Southwest Minnesota State University volleyball team will open the 2022 season ranked No. 22 in the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Division II Preseason Poll released on Wednesday, marking the program's first time being ranked in the preseason poll since 2019.

-The Mustangs round out the five NSIC schools ranked in the AVCA Top 25 with Concordia-St. Paul leading the way at the No. 6 spot, St. Cloud State placing at the No. 9 spot, Winona State ranking No. 15, and Wayne State sitting at No. 17.

    FRESH FACES 

-The 2022 fall will see the arrival of seven true freshmen for the first installment of Tyler Boddy's Mustangs

-Abby Meister, a libero/defensive specialist from Sioux Falls, S.D.

-Natalee Rolbiecki, an outside hitter from Minneota, Minn.

-McKenzie Tolk, a libero/defensive specialist from Minneota, Minn.

-Karli Symonsbergen, a setter from Lincoln, Neb.

-Emily Rohrer, a middle blocker/right side hitter from Slayton, Minn.

-Karli Arkell, a middle blocker/right side hitter from Lamberton, Minn.

-Ashley Peltier, a middle blocker/right side hitter from Taylor Falls, Minn.

    WESTERN COLORADO PREVIEW

2021 Record: 13-14, 8-10

Conference: RMAC

Head Coach: Eric Ballelos, first season

Mascot: Mountaineers

RMAC Preseason Rank: T9

Western Colorado Notes

-The Mountaineers reached the RMAC tournament a season ago, losing in three sets to Colorado School of Mines in the first round. 

-WCU is led by 2021 All-RMAC honorable mention member Elizabeth Rupprecht, who led the team in digs a season ago, and Jordyn Todd, who led the team with 231 kills last season.

    COLORADO CHRISTIAN PREVIEW

2021 Record: 11-16, 8-10

Conference: RMAC

Head Coach: Bobby Blanken, sixth season

Mascot: Cougars

RMAC Preseason Rank: 6

Colorado Christian Notes

-The Cougars ended the season as the sixth seed in the RMAC Tournament, losing in four sets to Colorado Mesa in the first round. 

-CCU is led by a trio of 2021 All-RMAC honorable mentions, with Izzy Jones (9.05 assists per set), Madelyn Long (4.30 digs per set), and Lilly Woods (1.96 kills per set/0.97 blocks per set) all return.

    COLORADO MESA PREVIEW

2021 Record: 21-7, 15-3

Conference: RMAC

Head Coach: Dave Fleming, 18th season

Mascot: Mavericks

AVCA Rank: RV

RMAC Preseason Rank: T2

Colorado Mesa Notes

-The Mavericks reached the RMAC semifinals last season, losing in five sets to Mines, and received the No. 3 seed in the NCAA South Central Regional, losing in four sets to Texas-Tyler in the quarterfinals.

-CMU is led by pair of AVCA All-American honorable mention honorees, as Sydney Leffler and Tye Wedhorn return after finishing first and second on the team in points, respectively.

    COLORADO SCHOOL OF MINES PREVIEW

2021 Record: 26-2, 16-2

Conference: RMAC

Head Coach: Jamie Magalei, 15th season

Mascot: Orediggers

AVCA Rank: 11

RMAC Preseason Rank: T2

Colorado School of Mines Notes

-The Orediggers won the RMAC Tournament in 2021, defeating top seeded MSU Denver in five sets to capture the title, and received the No 2 seed in the NCAA South Central Region Tournament, falling in the first round in five sets to West Texas A&M

-Mines is led by 2022 First Team All-RMAC libero/defensive specialist Elle Duis and Second Team All-RMAC outside hitter Rose Stuewe

    ON THE HORIZON

-SMSU heads to Missouri to play four games in the Drury/Southwest Baptist Classic, starting with a pair of games on Sept. 2, in Springfield, Mo., against Missouri Western State and Drury

-The Mustangs will go to Bolivar, Mo., for two games on Sept. 3, against Southern Arkansas and Rockhurst (Mo.).