THIS WEEK

The No. 17 ranked Southwest Minnesota State University volleyball team continue NSIC play with three matches this week.

SMSU will face off against Sioux Falls on Tuesday, Oct. 21, at 6 p.m. in the PE Gym.

The Mustangs will then be on the road Friday and Saturday, facing Minnesota Crookston on Oct. 24, at 6 p.m.. and Minnesota State Moorhead on Oct. 25, at 2 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

SMSU will play Sioux Falls for the 26th time, with the Mustangs holding a 20-5 record all time against the Cougars.

The Mustangs were defeated by the Cougars in five sets on Sept. 23, but have only lost to Sioux Falls at home one time in team history, back in 2013.

The Mustangs will meet Minnesota Crookston for the 42nd time, with the Mustangs leading the series 40-1 all time.

SMSU won the matchup against the Golden Eagles on Sept. 27 in three sets, and have won the last 32 in a row against the Golden Eagles.

SMSU will also meet Minnesota State Moorhead for the 118th time, with the Mustangs holding a 71-46 advantage.

The Mustangs won the meeting between the two earlier in the year, and have now won 26 in a row against the Dragons.

PREVIEWING SIOUX FALLS

2025 Record: 10-9, 5-6 NSIC

Current NSIC Ranking: 9th (as of Oct. 21)

Head Coach: Dan Matthews, 5th season

Since defeating the Mustangs on Sept. 23, the Cougars have gone 3-5, leaving the team at an overall record of 10-9 on the season.

Last weekend the Cougars lost on Thursday to now No. 6 ranked Wayne State in three sets and lost to Augustana in five sets on Saturday.

Preseason 'Player to Watch' Sadie Voss currently leads the Cougars with 224 kills, averaging 3.15 kills per set, while hitting .243. She is also second on the team in digs with 180.

PREVIEWING MINNESOTA CROOKSTON

2025 Record: 6-13, 0-11 NSIC

Current NSIC Ranking: 16th (as of Oct. 21)

Head Coach: Nick Meseck, 5th season

The Golden Eagles are still searching for their first conference win of the season, and came close to it last Thursday, taking No. 18 ranked Minnesota Duluth to five sets

Last weekend the Golden Eagles also played Bemidji State, losing in four sets.

Preseason 'Player to Watch' Kailee Waasdorp currently leads Minnesota Crookston with 379 digs, with 5.74 per set.She is currently in the top 5 in DII in digs and digs per set (UPDATE TUESDAY). 

PREVIEWING MINNESOTA STATE MOORHEAD

2025 Record: 12-7, 6-5 NSIC

Current NSIC Ranking: 8th (as of Oct. 14)

Head Coach: Kari Thompson, 3rd season

Since losing to the Mustangs in September, the Dragons have gone 4-3 in conference play.

Last weekend the Dragons won in four sets against Bemidji State, and were defeated by No. 18 Minnesota Duluth in three sets.

Preseason 'Player to Watch' Raiah Mandell currently leads MSU Moorhead with 218 kills, with 2.99 kills per set while hitting .299.

LAST WEEK

The Mustangs broke even, going 1-1 in last week's matches.

In Thursday's match against Augustana, Leah Jones led the Mustangs with 11 kills while hitting .323 on the night. Mya Krystosek was the other Mustang with double figure kills with 10, while earning a double double with 10 digs. 

McKenzie Tolk led the team in digs with 15, while Sydney Thein had 36 assists and nine digs.

In a four set match against No. 6 Wayne State on Saturday, Leah Jones led the Mustangs in kills with 16 in the match, hitting .289, with seven digs. Natalie Pilney had 14 kills, hit .417, and had four total blocks. Ashley Peltier had 13 kills, and Karli Arkell added 11 kills. 

McKenzie Tolk led the team in digs with 27, and Sydney Thein had a double double of 56 assists and 10 digs.

SMSU IN THE AVCA POLLS

SMSU moves down two spots, from No. 15 to No. 17 in the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Division II Week 7 Poll released on Oct. 20.

SMSU is one of seven NSIC schools represented in the recent poll, with Wayne State leading the conference at No. 6. Concordia-St. Paul remains at No. 10 followed by St. Cloud State at No. 11. The Mustangs are at No. 17, followed by Minnesota Duluth at No. 18. Northern State remains at No. 22, and Minnesota State moves up two spots to No. 23.

Following the AVCA poll released on Oct. 13, the Mustangs have now been ranked in the Top 25 for 248 of the last 249 rankings, dating back to Sept. 5, 2006.

SMSU IN THE NATIONAL RANKS  

The Mustangs have started the 2025 season with team and individual placements amongst the NCAA statistical leader boards.

SMSU rank No. 13 in DII in kills per set (14.24), No. 19 in hitting percentage as a team (.260), and are in the top 50 in digs per set (17.34)

The Mustangs are currently ninth in assists per set (13.53) and are No. 20 in total assists (947)

Leah Jones is No. 34 in kills per set with 3.86, and is currently No. 27 in total kills (266).

Sydney Thein is currently fifth in DII with 813 assists and third with 11.61 assists per set.

MUSTANGS LEADING THE CONFERENCE  

The Mustangs have started the 2025 season with team and individual placements amongst the NSIC statistical leader boards.

SMSU ranks first in the conference in assists with 946, and are first in both total digs (1214) and digs per set (17.43).The Mustangs are also third in kills with 997 on the season.

Leah Jones is fourth in the conference with 3.80 kills per set, and is third in kills with 266. Mya Krystosek is also in the top 20 in both categories.

Natalie Pilney and Karli Arkell are in the top 20 in both hitting percentage and total blocks.

Sydney Thein is currently first in the NSIC with 813 assists and second with 11.61 assists per set.

McKenzie Tolk is third in the NSIC in total digs (327) and fifth in digs per set (4.67).

Paige Steinmetz is in the conference top 20 in both total service aces (24) and aces per set (0.34).

HEAD COACH TYLER BODDY  

Tyler Boddy is in his fourth season as head coach in 2025 and has a career record of 82-24 overall, including 49-19 in Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference play with two NCAA tournament appearances (2023 & 2024). 

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. 

During his tenure at SMSU, the program has appeared in nine NCAA tournaments, including finishing as NCAA national runners-up in 2014. SMSU has a combined record of 330-94 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 will be back in the PE Gym next weekend, first on Friday, Oct. 31 against Minnesota Duluth at 6 p.m. for their annual Red Out. SMSU will then face Bemidji State the next day at 2 p.m.

All matches are available on the NSIC Network.

Tickets for both matches and more information can be found at smsumustangs.com/sports/womens-volleyball.