After facing its toughest home test yet this season last weekend, the University of Minnesota Duluth will hit the highway for another pair of tought Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference challenges this Friday and Saturday.
The No. 4 Bulldogs (20-2, 10-2 NSIC) downed NSIC foe St. Cloud State on Tuesday night and have now won four straight on the road as they continue a three-game road trip through the southern side of the conference. UMD plays a ranked team for the fifth time in 2013 with its other opponent receiving votes in this week's American Volleyball Coaches Association poll.
The Opponents
No. 17 Wayne State (Neb.) College (16-6, 7-5 NSIC) avenged a loss from earlier in 2013, sweeping Augustana College in Sioux Falls on Tuesday night. After starting the season 9-0, Wayne is just 4-4 in its last eight matches. Head coach Scott Kneifel and the Wildcats have a history of knocking off top teams, owning the lone victory over No. 1 Concordia-St. Paul in 2013. Senior outside hitter Cori Hobbs ranks eighth in the NSIC with 3.56 kills per set. Sophomore setter Leisa McClintock has 10.44 assists per game, good for sixth in the conference. Sophomore libero Courtney VanGroningen has collected the third-most digs in the NSIC and averages 4.47 per set.
Last season saw UMD sweep Wayne State on Oct. 13 as the Bulldogs moved their all-time record to 18-5 against the Wildcats.
Receiving votes in this week's AVCA poll, Augustana (16-4, 8-4 NSIC) has lost three straight to ranked opponents after falling to Wayne on Tuesday night. Head coach Ashley Buckley and the Vikings enter the weekend 2-2 in their last four after previously winning seven straight. Senior middle blocker Holly Hafemeyer leads the way with 287 kills, with junior outside hitter Courtney Ysker just behind her with 275. Sophomore Marissa Johnson serves as the team's primary setter, averaging 12.64 per set. Defensively, Augie has 140.0 blocks as a team, and junior libero Kayla Wallerich averages 4.03 digs per game.
The Bulldogs are 27-8 historically against Augustana , but fell last time out as the Vikings took down the Bulldogs in five sets on Oct. 12, 2012.
The Bulldogs
The UMD career kills record is liable to fall this weekend as senior outside hitter
Kate Lange, averaging the most kills in NCAA II this season at 5.32 per set, sits just 26 away from hitting the record of 1,843 owned by Vicky Braegelman ('07). Lange's 1,817 career kills rank second among active players behind Shippensburg's Jill Edwards (1,870), but she's done it in nearly 1,000 fewer swings than Edwards (5,337 to 4,400).
In other statistical ranks, sophomore setter
Ashley Hinsch overtook the eighth spot for career assists with 2,088 in just a year and a half at UMD. The all-time record for Bulldogs belongs to Katie Ganglehoff ('08) who collected 6,035 in her four seasons. With 1,540 career digs, junior libero
Julie Rainey sits nine away from third place among all-time Bulldogs. The record is held by Cheryl Carlson ('91) who had 1,703 in her career.
No. 4 and No. 17 take the floor in Wayne on Friday evening at 7:00 p.m. before the Bulldogs turn around for a Saturday matinee with Augustana in Sioux Falls with a 4:00 p.m. opening serve.
