THIS WEEKEND
• The No. 12 SMSU volleyball kicks off a two-match road swing with a single match this week against No. 7 Wayne State (16-3, 10-1 NSIC).
• The Mustangs match up against the Wildcats on Thursday, Oct. 24, with first serve slated for 6 p.m.

MATCH COVERAGE
• Live stats and video for all matches will be available at SMSUmustangs.com
• Stay up to date on the Mustangs throughout the weekend by downloading the official SMSU Athletics app.

SERIES HISTORY
• Thursday will be the 65th meeting between SMSU and WSC, with the Wildcats leading the series 31-32-1.
• The Mustangs fell the Wildcats twice a season ago, falling in five sets in the first meeting and getting swept in the second.
• Six of the last 10 meetings have went the way of the Mustangs.
• SMSU is 7-13 all-time on the road against WSC.

MORE ON WAYNE STATE
• WSC is 12-1 in 3-set matches, 4-0 in four-set contests and 0-2 in 5-set matches.
• Wayne State leads the NSIC in hitting percentage (.287) - fifth in NCAA Division II, opponent hitting percentage (.155) and blocks per set (2.48). The 'Cats are third in service aces per set (1.83), fourth in kills per set (13.18) and seventh in digs (16.02).
• Senior middle hitter Taya Beller leads a balanced Wildcat attack with 3.69 kills per set (2nd-NSIC). She also ranks second in the league in points per set (4.72), blocks per set (1.29) and fifth in hitting percentage (.362).
• Sophomore outside hitter Channatee Robles accounts for 2.91 kills per set (13th-NSIC) and averages 2.40 digs per set.
• Senior middle hitter Maggie Brahmer continues to lead the NSIC in hitting percentage at .433, which is sixth in NCAA Division II. She produces 2.82 kills and is 13th in the NSIC in blocks per set at 0.91.
• Senior outside hitter Brooklyn Kusler averages 2.72 kills per set and is sixth in the NSIC in service aces per set at 0.43 Kusler is coming off a stellar week for the 'Cats last week with a team-high 30 kills and a .403 hitting percentage in wins over Augustana and Minnesota State.
• Senior libero Brooke Peltz, this week's NSIC Defensive Player of the Week, ranks fourth in the league with 5.17 digs per set. She averaged a league-best 7.00 digs per set last week highlighted by a careerhigh 34 at Minnesota State Saturday. Peltz also ranks second on the team in service aces (20).
• Freshman setter Molly Romano has a team-high six double-doubles this season, ranking fourth in the league with 10.88 assists per set to go with 2.43 digs per set. She also ranks third on the team in blocks at 0.69 per set.
• WSU is averaging 12.7 kills per set on 18.8 percent hitting while opponents average 11.9 kills on 19.7 percent hitting.

LAST TIME OUT
• The Winona State defense limited the seventh-ranked Mustangs to a season-low .131 hitting percentage to grab a four set win 25-18, 25-21, 23-25, 25-18 in Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference action on Friday night.
• Leah Jones led SMSU with 13 kills and an ace on offense, and recorded 12 digs for a double-double. Karli Arkell followed with 12 kills on .458 hitting and added four block assists on defense.  
• Sydney Thein helped on offense with 38 set assists while grabbing 10 digs for a double-double.
• McKenzie Tolk anchored the back line with 14 digs, followed by Mya Krystosek securing 13 digs. 
• No. 12 Concordia-St. Paul took three-straight sets to stun No. 7 Southwest Minnesota State 22-25, 24-26, 25-19, 25-13, 15-12 in a come-from-behind win in Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference volleyball on Saturday afternoon.
• Three Mustangs reached double-figures in kills with Leah Jones and Saari Kuehl leading the way at 15 apiece. Jones added a pair of block assists and an ace while logging 16 digs on defense for a double-double. Kuehl grabbed a solo block and six digs. 
• Emma VanHeel recorded 12 kills on .346 hitting and a pair of service aces on offense while jumping for a team-high six block assists and putting up five digs on defense. 
• Sydney Thein supported the attack with 48 set assists and a pair of aces. Thein also recorded a pair of block assists and nine digs.
• McKenzie Tolk led the defense with a match-high 24 digs. Kennedy Drake chipped in 15 digs in addition.

JONES, THEIN EARN NSIC VOLLEYBALL WEEKLY HONORS
• The Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference office announced on Sept. 30 that Leah Jones and Sydney Thein earned weekly player honors following a 3-0 week at home, including a pair of five-set victories. 
• Jones, a native of Marshall, Minn., earns NSIC Offensive Player of the Week for the first time in her career. The sophomore outside hitter was the cornerstone of the SMSU offense last week, posting a team-high 4.00 kills per set (52 total) on a .244 hitting percentage, while assisting the offense with four assists and three service aces.
• Jones batted down a match-high 18 kills while adding 17 digs and a pair of blocks for a double-double in the 3-2 non-conference win over Augustana. In the five-set win over No. 22 Northern State, Jones swung for a career-high 19 kills on .250 hitting while again adding 18 digs for another double-double.
• She would end the weekend with a match-high 15 kills on a season-best .379 hitting percentage in the sweep over MSU Moorhead. Jones is a 2023 graduate of Marshall High School.
• Thein, a native of Clara City, Minn., earns NSIC Setter of the Week honors for the second consecutive week. The redshirt freshman shined over the week posting 12.38 assists per set, while leading the Mustangs to a .285 team hitting percentage.
• Thein recorded a then-career-high 56 assists against Augustana, then logged a career-high 64 assists in the win over No. 22 Northern State.
• She would end the weekend with a career match-high 13.67 assists per set (41) against MSU Moorhead, while boasting 7.67 digs per set (23) in the win. Thein also had a standout weekend defensively, posting 4.15 digs per set.

THEIN EARNS NSIC SETTER OF THE WEEK HONORS
• SMSU redshirt freshman setter Sydney Thein was named the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference Setter of the Week on Monday, Sept. 23, following her performances in SMSU's 2-0 weekend in North Dakota.
• Thein, a native of Clara City, Minn., shined over the week, ranking first in the league in assists per set (12.17), while leading the Mustangs to an NSIC-best .313 team hitting percentage.
• Thein recorded 36 assists in the sweep over Minot State on Sept. 20, then logged 37 assists in the 3-0 win over UMary on Sept. 21.
• She would end the weekend with 12.17 assists per set while hitting .250 and recording 17 digs. She is the first Mustang to win an NSIC weekly honor since Oct. 9, 2023, when Emma VanHeel earned defensive honors, and is the first SMSU setter to earn the honor since Emma Thomssen won the weekly accolade in 2018. 

MUSTANG MACHINES
• SMSU ranks second in NSIC play in assists per set (13.82) and third in kills per set (14.48), while coming in fourth in team hitting pct. (.253), blocks per set (2.25), and digs per set (18.07).
• Senior outside hitter Saari Kuehl leads SMSU in hitting with 242 kills (3.36 per set), followed by sophomore outside hitter Leah Jones with 222 kills (3.08 per set). Senior middle blocker Emma VanHeel comes in third with 189 kills while sophomore right side hitter Ashley Peltier adds 178 kills. 
• VanHeel also leads the Mustang blockers with 80 blocks.
• Redshirt freshman setter Sydney Thein anchors the offense with 837 assists (11.63 per set) while supporting the attack with 56 kills on .333 hitting. Thein adds 228 digs and 19 service aces.
• Junior libero McKenzie Tolk leads the defense with 381 digs (5.29 per set) while supporting the offense with 72 assists.

SMSU AND THE NSIC IN THE POLLS
• SMSU dropped to No. 12 in the most recent American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Division II poll released on Oct. 21.
• SMSU is one of six NSIC schools ranked in the top 25 with St. Cloud State coming in at No. 3, followed by Wayne State at No. 7 and Concordia-St. Paul at No. 11, while Northern State ranks No. 22. Minnesota Duluth clocks in at No. 25. 
• Following the AVCA poll released on Oct. 21, the Mustangs have now been ranked in the Top 25 for 236 of the last 237 rankings, dating back to Sept. 5, 2006.

SMSU IN THE NATIONAL RANKS  
• The Mustangs currently hold multiple team and individual placements amongst the weekly NCAA statistical leader boards.
• SMSU ranks third in the nation in assists per set (14.01), fourth in kills per set (14.74), and seventh in Division II in digs per set (19.04).
• The Mustangs sit at No. 3 in total assists (1,009), No. 9 in total kills (1,061), and No. 16 in total digs (1,371).
• Sydney Thein comes in at No. 5 in assists per set (11.63) and No. 4 in total assists (837), while McKenzie Tolk ranks No. 22 in digs per set (5.29) and No. 19 in total digs (381).

HEAD COACH TYLER BODDY  
• Tyler Boddy is in his third season as head coach in 2024 and has a career record of 63-16 overall, including 37-12 in Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference play.
• Boddy, who spent 10 years as an assistant coach at SMSU, became the fifth head coach in the program's 50-year history on Dec. 17, 2021. 
• In that time, the program has appeared in eight NCAA tournaments, including finishing as NCAA national runners-up in 2014. SMSU has a combined record of 311-86 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.
• Boddy, a 2012 graduate of Wisconsin-Oshkosh, lives in Marshall with his wife, Alex, sons, Bronx and Wilke, and daughter, Rowan.

ON THE HORIZON
• The Mustangs are back on the road next week with a single match on Wednesday, Oct. 30, versus Minnesota State at 6 p.m.
• SMSU returns home the following weekend with a match against Sioux Falls on Nov. 2.