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Volleyball

No. 11 Mustangs head South to start 2023 season at the Springhill Suites Invitational

THIS WEEK
  • The No. 11 Southwest Minnesota State University volleyball team opens its regular season schedule on the road this Friday and Saturday, competing at the Springhill Suites Invitational in Mobile, Ala., and Pensacola, Fla.
  •  The first two matches will be played at Spring Hill College, starting with Oklahoma Baptist at 10 a.m. on Friday before facing off against the tournament co-host Spring Hill (Ala.) at 1 p.m., that same afternoon.
  • The Mustangs then head to Pensacola, Fla., for two more tournament matches where they square up against Wheeling (W. Va.) at 11:30 a.m., and co-host West Florida at 4:30 p.m. to round out the road trip.
 
MATCH COVERAGE
  • Live stats and video for all four matches will be available at SMSUmustangs.com
  • Stay up to date on the Mustangs throughout the weekend by downloading the official SMSU Athletics app on your smartphone.
 
SERIES HISTORY
  • SMSU will meet with both Oklahoma Baptist and Spring Hill for the first time in program history.
  • Wheeling (W. Va.) and SMSU will meet for the fourth time in history with SMSU holding a 2-1 advantage.
  • The first meeting was in 2014 and the last meeting occurred in 2018 with SMSU winning in three sets.
  • West Florida and SMSU will meet for the eighth time, with the Mustangs holding the advantage 5-2.
  • The first meeting was in 2011 and the last meeting came in 2018 with SMSU losing in four sets to the then-No. 15 ranked Argonauts.
 
2023 OUTLOOK
  • SMSU returns nine letter winners from its 2022 team that finished with a 23-6 overall record. The 2023 team features two seniors, four juniors, four sophomores, three redshirt freshmen and three true freshmen.
  • SMSU senior setter, Alisa Bengen, was named an NSIC 'Player to Watch'. Bengen earned All-NSIC second team in 2022 after a season where she finished with 1,154 assists, averaging 10.69 assists per set, including a career-high 62 assists in the match against Missouri Western.
  • Junior middle blocker Emma VanHeel looks to build off a strong sophomore season that saw her named to the All-NSIC second team. VanHeel finished second on the team in points (331), second in blocks (96) and third in kills (252).
  • Junior outside hitters, Saari Kuehl and Halle Jansen, return after ranking second and fourth on the team in kills, tallying 293 and 197 respectively.
  • Returning sophomores Natalee Rolbiecki, McKenzie Tolk and Karli Arkell will look to continue their strong defensive play from their freshmen campaign, as Rolbiecki and Tolk were top two on the team in digs and Arkell led the Mustangs in blocks.
 
LAST SEASON
  • The Mustangs went 23-6 in the 2022 season, going 15-5 in conference play and finishing the season ranked No. 12 in the AVCA DII Top 25 Poll.
  • SMSU received the No. 4 seed in the NSIC Tournament, falling to St. Cloud State in three sets to end the season.
  • The Mustangs started the season on a hot streak, 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 three wins to end the 2022 season gave SMSU 14 straight regular season victories, its fourth longest win streak in program history.
  • SMSU closed the season 23-6 overall and 15-5 in the NSIC, missing out on the NCAA Tournament due to a trio of conference tournament champions within the region that were not ranked in the top eight of the final NCAA Central Region Rankings. Following the 2023 preseason poll, the Mustangs have now been ranked in the Top 25 for 215 of the last 216 rankings, dating back to Sept. 5, 2006, and were ranked in the Top 10 for 11 consecutive weeks.
 
HEAD COACH TYLER BODDY
  • Tyler Boddy is in his second season as head coach after being named to the position on Dec. 17, 2021, and will enter the year with a career record of 23-6 overall and 15-5 in the NSIC.
  • 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 271-76 during his tenure which includes two Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference regular season titles and two NSIC tournament championships.
  • 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.
 
HISTORY BOOKS 
  • Following a career-high 1,154 assist season in 2022, SMSU senior setter, Alisa Bengen currently ranks 8th all-time in assists in program history with 2,395 and aims to climb the rankings as the season progresses.
  • Bengen earned All-NSIC second team honors in 2022, as well as Academic All-NSIC and Academic All-District honors.
  • Additionally, Bengen appeared in 108 sets in 29 matches with 28 starts, finishing with a team-best 1,154 assists. Furthermore, Bengen averaged 10.69 assists per set, recorded 121 kills, collected 212 digs, had a career-high 62 assists against Missouri Western (9/2), and recorded a season-high 17 digs against Sioux Falls (10/25).
 
SMSU SELECTED FIFTH IN NSIC PRESEASON POLL
  • SMSU was picked to finish fifth in the annual 15-team Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference Preseason Coaches' Poll.
  • Concordia-St. Paul was selected as the preseason favorites to win the conference earning 190 points and eight first place votes (coaches can't vote for their own school). The defending NSIC regular season champion, Wayne State, earned 189 points and the remaining seven first place votes to finish in second place. In third place was Minnesota Duluth with 165 points, while the defending tournament champion, St. Cloud State had 154 points. SMSU rounded out the top five earning 142 points.
 
SMSU AND THE NSIC IN THE POLLS 
  • SMSU opens the 2023 season ranked No. 11 in the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Division II Preseason Poll released on Tuesday, giving SMSU back-to-back appearances in the preseason poll.
  • SMSU is one of five NSIC schools ranked in the top 11 with Concordia-St. Paul leading the way at No. 2, followed by Wayne State at No. 4, St. Cloud State at No. 7, while Minnesota Duluth is placed at the No. 8 spot.
 
NEWCOMERS

The 2023 fall will see the arrival of three true freshmen and two transfer players for Tyler Boddy's Mustangs
  • Mya Krystosek*, an outside hitter/defensive specialist from Otsego, Minn.
  • Emily Strasser*, a libero/defensive specialist from Sioux Falls, S.D.
  • Sydney Thein, a setter from Clara City, Minn.
  • Leah Jones, an outside hitter from Marshall, Minn.
  • Emily Rohrer, a middle blocker/right side hitter from Slayton, Minn.
  • Nancy Peter, a middle blocker from Sioux Falls, S.D.
* denotes transfer player
 
OKLAHOMA BAPTIST PREVIEW
  • 2022 Record: 19-11, 13-3
  • Conference: GAC
  • Head Coach: Anna Howle, 16th season
  • Mascot: Bison
  • GAC Preseason Rank: 2
Oklahoma Baptist Notes
  • The Bison reached the GAC tournament a season ago, losing in four sets to Northwestern Oklahoma State in the first round.
  • Heading into head coach Anna Howle's 16th season, the Bison return several key front-line players including the GAC Defensive Player of the Year from 2022 Maci Langford, All-GAC First Team selection D'Erricka Frierson as well as All-GAC honorees Avery Hellmuth and Jill Leslie.
 
SPRING HILL (ALA.) PREVIEW
  • 2022 Record: 29-8, 19-0
  • Conference: SIAC West
  • Head Coach: Peggy Martin, 15th season
  • Mascot: Badgers
  • SIAC West Preseason Rank: 1
Spring Hill (Ala.) Notes
  • The Badgers ended the season as SIAC Champions and the eighth seed in the NCAA DII South Regional Tournament, losing in four sets to Tampa in the first round.
  • SHC is led by graduate student Mikayla Boyer. The 2022 SIAC Libero of the Year and First-Team All-Conference selection surpassed 1,000 career digs (1,424) and tallied a league-leading 586 digs on the court last year. The Louisiana native was also recognized on the College Sports Communicators Academic All-District Team in 2022.
 
WHEELING (W. VA.) PREVIEW
  • 2022 Record: 27-8, 15-1
  • Conference: MEC
  • Head Coach: Christy Benner, 22nd season
  • Mascot: Cardinals
  • MEC Preseason Rank: N/A
Wheeling (W. Va) Notes
  • The Cardinals defeated Charleston to win the MEC Tournament last season, winning in four sets, and received the No. 3 seed in the NCAA DII Atlantic Regional Tournament, losing in four sets to Clarion in the semifinals.
  • The Cardinals have lost one game or fewer in conference play every year since they joined the MEC and had a record 219 straight conference wins to start their run. The Cardinals are once again looking to make it back to the regional and national stage again in 2023.
 
WEST FLORIDA PREVIEW
  • 2022 Record: 28-6, 15-1
  • Conference: GSC
  • Head Coach: Melissa Wolter, 18th season
  • Mascot: Argonauts
  • AVCA Preseason Rank: 12
  • GSC Preseason Rank: 1
West Florida Notes
  • The Argonauts won the GSC Tournament in 2022, defeating Union in three sets to capture the title, and received the No. 5 seed in the NCAA DII South Regional Tournament, falling in the first round in five sets to West Texas A&M
  • UWF was the unanimous selection as head coach Melissa Wolter's squad earned the maximum 11 first place votes on its way to 121 poll points. It marked the 13th time in the last 14 seasons that the Argonauts were picked first and eighth time to earn the maximum number of first place votes.
  • The Argonauts are led by a trio of all-league selections in Alex Oliver, Avery Rodgers and Jenna Zydlo. Oliver is a junior right side who hit .230 with 2.35 kills per set a year ago while 11 double-digit kill matches. Rodgers was a second-team all-GSC right side performer who ranked fifth in the league with 2.79 kills per set and is sixth with a .311 hitting pct. as a sophomore in 2022. Zydlo is coming off an all-region sophomore campaign in which she was second in the GSC with a .378 hitting pct. & 12th with 2.6 kills per set.
 
ON THE HORIZON 
  • SMSU heads to Kansas to play four matches in the Pittsburg State (Kan.) Classic, starting with a pair of matches on Sept. 8, in Pittsburg, Kan., against Arkansas Fort Smith and Northwestern Oklahoma.
  • The Mustangs will finish their trip to Kansas with two matches on Sept. 9, against Drury (Ill.) and tournament host Pittsburg State (Kan.).
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Players Mentioned

Karli Arkell

#21 Karli Arkell

MB/RS
6' 3"
Sophomore
Halle Jansen

#13 Halle Jansen

OH
5' 11"
Senior
Saari Kuehl

#5 Saari Kuehl

OH
6' 0"
Junior
Emily Rohrer

#16 Emily Rohrer

MB/RS
6' 1"
Redshirt Freshman
McKenzie Tolk

#11 McKenzie Tolk

L/DS
5' 5"
Sophomore
Emma VanHeel

#8 Emma VanHeel

MB
6' 0"
Junior
Alisa Bengen

#6 Alisa Bengen

S
5' 9"
Senior
Emily Strasser

#2 Emily Strasser

L/DS
5' 6"
Senior
Mya Krystosek

#1 Mya Krystosek

OH/DS
5' 11"
Redshirt Freshman
Leah Jones

#10 Leah Jones

OH
6' 2"
Freshman

Players Mentioned

Karli Arkell

#21 Karli Arkell

6' 3"
Sophomore
MB/RS
Halle Jansen

#13 Halle Jansen

5' 11"
Senior
OH
Saari Kuehl

#5 Saari Kuehl

6' 0"
Junior
OH
Emily Rohrer

#16 Emily Rohrer

6' 1"
Redshirt Freshman
MB/RS
McKenzie Tolk

#11 McKenzie Tolk

5' 5"
Sophomore
L/DS
Emma VanHeel

#8 Emma VanHeel

6' 0"
Junior
MB
Alisa Bengen

#6 Alisa Bengen

5' 9"
Senior
S
Emily Strasser

#2 Emily Strasser

5' 6"
Senior
L/DS
Mya Krystosek

#1 Mya Krystosek

5' 11"
Redshirt Freshman
OH/DS
Leah Jones

#10 Leah Jones

6' 2"
Freshman
OH