December 7, 2014 – Hoof Prints Article Hello Mustang Fans!
Big weekend in store for SMSU Athletics!
I am writing this article from the NCAA Division II National Championship Festival in Louisville, KY.
The SMSU Volleyball team had an incredible comeback against a very good Sonoma State Volleyball team on Thursday. Our team showed great character being down 0-2 in the match and behind 1-8 in set three. The Mustangs gain the momentum late in the third set and carried it through set five earning a 3-2 victory. I do not know if I have ever seen or experience a comeback of this nature.
SMSU Volleyball is now one of four teams left in the tournament and competed against Grand Valley State at 3:00 pm yesterday on the campus of Bellarmine University. If the Mustangs are victorious, they will take on the winner of Tampa/Arkansas Fort Smith on Saturday at 3:00 pm for the National Championship.
The Festival format to the Division II National Championships has been a rewarding experience for our coaches and student-athletes. The opening ceremony at Churchill Downs was an amazing event at a historical landmark in Louisville. The NCAA has provided our team and all of the 56 teams competing at the championships a first-class experience.
At the opening ceremony, the SMSU Volleyball team was recognized for being the top performing academic squad at the championships for the sport of volleyball. As many of you have already seen, Claire Sames was awarded the Elite 89 award as the student-athlete with the highest GPA at the NCAA Division II National Championships in the sport of volleyball.
On Thursday, the SMSU fans provided the Mustang Volleyball team great support and energy as our team made that unbelievable comeback. A big thank you to all of the fans who made the trip to Louisville to cheer on the Mustangs! The SMSU Volleyball program has done a wonderful job of representing the University and the City of Marshall at this national competition.
Good luck to the SMSU Volleyball team this week at the NCAA Division II National Championships!
Also today, the Mustang Booster Club and Skewes Jewelry will host a post-game this evening at Skewes Jewelry in Marshall located at 1300 Susan Drive. The social will take place following the women's and men's basketball games versus Upper Iowa. The event is open to all Mustang Booster Club members.
For all the latest information on the NCAA DII National Championships for Volleyball and Mustang Athletics go to SMSUmustangs.com.
This Week in SMSU Athletics The SMSU Men’s Basketball team (5-2, 1-0 NSIC) will play two NSIC contests this weekend in the R/A Facility. The Mustangs opened up NSIC play on Tuesday with a 72-68 victory over Sioux Falls. Yesterday, Southwest took on Winona State University (4-1, 1-0 NSIC) with the game starting at 8:00 pm, before closing the weekend with a 7:00 pm game versus Upper Iowa University (4-2, 0-1 NSIC) on Saturday.
The SMSU Women’s Basketball team (0-5, 0-1 NSIC) will return to NSIC play this weekend. The Mustangs are coming off a 51-69 loss to Dakota Wesleyan this past Tuesday. The Mustangs will play Winona State (5-0, 1-0 NSIC) on Friday night at 6:00 pm, before facing Upper Iowa (2-3, 0-1 NSIC) on Saturday at 5:00 pm with both contests in the R/A Facility.
At evening’s basketball games, Mr. and Mrs. Claus will be making an appearance in the R/A Facility and have a treat for children of all ages. Following this weekend's games, both the men’s and women’s basketball teams will hit the road for the first time in NSIC play next Friday and Saturday facing U-Mary and Minot State.
The SMSU Wrestling team (1-0) returns to action today with three matches at the Wisconsin-La Crosse Duals in La Crosse, WI. The Mustangs opened their dual season on November 19 with a 35-9 home victory over St. John's, will face three Division III opponents on Saturday.
The Mustangs will open with UW-La Crosse (2-0) starting at 9:00 am, before facing UW-Eau Claire (0-3) at 10:45 am and closing with the University of Dubuque (0-1) at 12:30 pm.
SMSU last competed on November 22 at the Augsburg Open with senior
Jacob Begin leading the way with a first place finish in the Gold Division at 174 pounds. Senior
Cole Wilson earned a second place finish in the Gold Division at 285 pounds, while redshirt freshman
Colton Vekved also placed second in the Silver Division at 165 pounds. Freshman
Patrick Kelley finished third in the Silver Division at 157 pounds. Following action this weekend, SMSU will return home to face Augsburg College on December 11.
The SMSU Wheelchair Basketball team (3-13) will be back in action today and tomorrow at the University of Missouri Tournament held in Columbia, MO. The Mustangs played the University of Illinois at 4:00 pm and the University fo Wisconsin Whitewater 6:00pm. Southwest will continue play on Saturday battling Whitewater again at 9:00 am and the University of Missouri at 11:00 a.m. to conclude the weekend tournament.
I would like to wish all of our teams the best of luck this weekend!
Go Mustangs!
Congratulations to Tyler Tonderum, who provided the correct answer to our last Mustang Hoofprints Question: When was the last time the SMSU Volleyball team beat the University of Minnesota, Duluth? The Mustangs beat UMD at home in 2012.
Hoofprints Trivia Question (please put this in a box with the title on top)
Who is the career leader in rebounding for the SMSU Women’s Basketball program?
The first person to email me at
MustangHoofPrints@SMSU.edu with the correct answer to this question will receive an SMSU t-shirt.
