THE OPENING SERVE: The University of Minnesota Duluth will hope to advance to its first NCAA II Central Region Championship match for the first time since 2014. Standing in their way is the host and first seed Southwest Minnesota State. The Central Region Tournament runs through Saturday, Dec. 2 with the winner advancing to the Division II Elite Eight in Pensacola, Fla. on Dec. 7-9.
The eight-team region tournament is held at the PE Gym on the campus of Southwest Minnesota State. There are four teams remaining in the region. The Bulldogs were tagged with the fifth seed and advanced through the quarterfinal round to face the Mustangs Friday, at 7:30 p.m.

THE PAIRINGS: No. 2 Concordia-St. Paul (29-3) vs. No. 6 Missouri Western State (25-10) -- 5:00 p.m.

No. 1 Southwest Minnesota State (29-3) vs. No. 5 UMD (25-6) -- 7:30 p.m.

SCOUTING REPORT ON SOUTHWEST MINNESOTA STATE: The Mustangs come into the contest 29-3 and finished off Arkansas Tech University in three sets in its quarterfinal matchup yesterday. SMSU was second in the NSIC regular season and went on to win the NSIC Tournament in St. Paul, Minn.
The Mustangs are making their 14th consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance and their 15th overall. They are 17-14 in the NCAA Tournament all-time. 
SMSU is coached by Terry Culhane, whom is in his 14th year with the team. His club has gone 11-3 versus ranked opponents including knocking off No. 1 Concordia-St. Paul on two different occasions. As a unit, they rank first in assists per set (14.26) and kills per set (15.32).
Junior Taylor Reiss is the formidable foe UMD will have to watch for. Reiss has claimed multiple accolades this season. She was named the NSIC Player of the Year, the AVCA and D2CCA Central Region Player of the Year as well. She shattered the Bulldogs' Mariah Scharf NSIC Tournament kills in a game record with 41 in the NSIC Championship match. Reiss is third in kills per set (5.17).
Senior Megan Larson is third in the nation in assists per set (12.45) and fourth in total assists (1,432) this year. She has SMSU hitting .293 on the season including .365 in the match versus Arkansas Tech.
Freshman Sarina Smith paces the club in blocks (0.92 per set) with 103 total blocks and, similar to the Bulldogs, have three players (Reiss, freshman Dani Potter and junior Kaylee Burmeister) registering at least three digs per set. Burmeister leads them with 372 digs.

THE SERIES: UMD leads the series 65-18 and is 7-3 in the last ten matches. Each team won on its home floor during the regular season. SMSU won in straight sets while the Bulldogs won in four.
UMD is 2-1 in the NCAA Tournament vs. SMSU. It pulled out victories in the semifinals twice, once in 2008 and the other in 2013. The Mustangs laid claim to the last victory beating the Bulldogs on their home floor in the 2014 regional championship.

HOW THEY RANK: Here is how UMD and SMSU stack up in the AVCA poll and the NCAA Central Region seeding.
TEAM        RECORD       AVCA        SEED
UMD             25-6              7th              5th
SMSU           29-3              2nd             1st

THE BROADCAST: The matches this weekend will be carried live through a video stream, in addition to live stats capabilities, and is available for free at:
portal.stretchinternet.com/smsu

For those interested in live stats only follow the link below:
www.sidearmstats.com/smsu/wvball/

LAST SIDE OUT: UMD fought in its fourth straight five-set match last night and survived a comeback scare from Northern State University in the quarterfinal round of the NCAA II Central Region. 
The Bulldogs led 2-0 to none going into the third and was up 22-21 in that set. The Wolves battled back to win the set and also captured the fourth. Northern State was up 4-1 early in last set. UMD stormed back to six-up and struggled back-and-forth to 12-12. The Bulldogs went on a 3-0 run to win the match and advance to the next round.
Sarah Kelly propelled the Bulldogs in the five-set thriller. Kelly stuffed the stat sheet posting a match-high 23 kills, 14 digs, a match and career-high eight blocks and two aces.
Kelly piled up 20-plus kills for the fourth time this season. In addition, her eight blocks was a career high. She set the tone early in the match posting eight kills alone in the opening set.
It was an emotional rollercoaster which the Bulldogs have been recently accustomed to. With the match, and the season hanging in the balance, Emily Torve set Kelly for the go-ahead kill at 13-12 and later UMD would secured the victory 15-12 on a block by Kelly and senior Allison Olley.
UMD had four players hit double figures in kills for the seventh time this season. Freshman outside hitter Kate Berg, Olley and sophomore middle blocker Abby Thor all collected 11 kills. The Bulldogs was solid defensively despite being outhit .242-.239. They posted more digs (84-69) and blocks (10.0-9.0).

IN THE NCAA TOURNAMENT: This is the 20th time in program history UMD has been to the national tournament and its 15th in the last 16 seasons. The Bulldogs had an early exit last year, losing in four sets to Winona State.
The Bulldogs have made it out of the region twice in 2004 and 2006. Each time they have lost in the to eventual champions in the semifinals. Barry defeated UMD in 2004 and Tampa did the same thing two years later.
The Bulldogs are attempting to get back to the regional championship for the first time since 2014.

FARING AGAINST THE CENTRAL REGION: Against ranked opponents this season, UMD is 8-4. Southwest Minnesota State will be its sixth straight ranked opponent in a row, a program high.  The Bulldogs are 6-4 against teams that made the field of 64 and 3-3 versus the central region. With the remaining competition, they split against top-seeded Southwest Minnesota State and second-seeded Concordia-St. Paul

GOING THE DISTANCE: The last four matches have gone to the fifth set, which is the first time in program history that four consecutive matches have needed the decisive final set. UMD is 4-2 in fifth sets this season. 2009 was the last time the Bulldogs won four five-set matches.

SPREAD THE WEALTH: The Bulldogs have had at least three attackers rip 10 or more kills in a single match on 15 occasions. They are 12-3 in those 15 matches.  When UMD had four attackers notch double figures kills, it has gone 6-1 with that only loss coming to Saint Leo. Once have the Bulldogs registered five attackers hitting that mark. They defeated Wayne State in four sets back on Sept. 22.

ON A ROLL: Kate Berg passed Sarah Kelly for consecutive matches with double digit kills yesterday with 11 kills. Berg has now posted at least 10 kills in eight straight matches, a run that started back on Oct. 31 against St. Cloud State. Kelly had her streak run from Sept. 14 to Sept 29 which ended when she only collected nine kills vs. SMSU.

YOU CAN ONLY HOPE TO CONTAIN IT: Displaying the nation's best offense in terms of its attack percentage and the second-best kills per set, the Bulldogs have hit above the .300-mark in 19 of its 30 matches and above .400 in four of those. UMD has only hit sub-.200 only three times this season. They have out blasted the opposition in kills in all but two matches (SMSU- 9/30 and Winona State- 11/15).
The Bulldogs have the three of the top 17 highest kill totals in three set matches, and top ten totals in a four and five set match as well. Eight players have notched collegiate bests for kills in a match this season.

TOP NOTCH OFFENSE: As good as UMD's .293 attack clip is, it's the third best percentage since Jim Boos' arrival in 2002. UMD hit .299 in 2015 and .305 in 2013.

WATCH THE ATTACK ERRORS: With all that success, UMD has killed itself in its six losses on attack errors. It has combined to hit .178 in those six games and mishandle the attack with an average of 28.3 errors a match or 7.1 errors a set. On average, the Bulldogs commit 17.6 errors a match and only 4.3 a set when they pull out a victory.

SLIP THROUGH THE BLOCK: The Bulldogs have been slightly below their yearly average in blocks per set the past few years. UMD is averaging a solid 1.94 blocks a set, but it's lowest mark since 2011 (1.75). Opponents are hitting .187 this year,which is tied for the highest average in Jim Boos' tenure. In 2015, the Bulldogs also allowed the opposition to attack at a .187-clip.

BEST OF THE CONFERENCE: Five Bulldogs were recognized by the NSIC for all-conference accolades. Junior right side Sarah Kelly and senior middle blocker Allison Olley each received first team honors. Freshman outside hitter Kate Berg, junior outside hitter Makenzie Morgen and sophomore setter Emily Torve each obtained NSIC second team distinction.

WEEKLY HONORS: Four Bulldogs (Allison Olley, Emily Torve, Sarah Kelly and Abby Thor) have been recognized by the NSIC, garnering accolades from each available award. Kelly and Torve each collected their second honors on Nov. 6.
Player of the Week Honors
Oct. 9- Allison Olley Offense PoW
Oct. 9- Emily Torve Setter PoW
Oct. 16- Sarah Kelly Offensive PoW
Oct. 23- Abby Thor Defensive PoW
Nov. 6- Sarah Kelly (2) Offense PoW
Nov. 6- Emily Torve (2) Setter PoW

ATOP THE NCAA MOUNTAIN: UMD is known year in and year out to boast some of the nation's best numbers and this year is no different as it ranks among the NCAA's best in terms of individual and team rankings.
Sophomore setter Emily Torve ranks fifth in the nation with 12.13 assists/set. She also holds the third best mark for assists in a three-set match (50) in all of Division II.
With senior setter Sarah Heesacker, UMD is second in the nation in assists/set (14.28). Those assists numbers also have the Bulldogs sitting in second on the leader board for kills/set at an astounding 15.18.
Senior middle blocker Allison Olley and junior Sarah Kelly have each established themselves as one of the most efficient hitters in the country. Kelly (.417) and Olley (.391) sit third and ninth, respectively, in attack percentage. Either Olley or Kelly have held the number one spot for well over two months. Those outstanding clips have catapulted UMD to the best hitting average in the land at .293, two points ahead of next best Southwest Minnesota State (.291).

SET IT AND FORGET IT: Sophomore setter Emily Torve moved up to ninth all-time among set assists with 2,672 at UMD. Torve passed Shelia Brown's (1985-86) mark of 2,019 with her 60-assist effort versus Winona State. Tammy Wermager is eighth on the UMD charts with 3,513. Torve hit 1,000 assists for a second consecutive season vs. SMSU (11/3) and is the current leader among active players in assists per set at 12.02 edging Marina Hansen (Colo. School of Mines). Torve also turned in a new personal match-high with 65 assists this season. Ashley Hinsch, who preceded Torve, is the last UMD player to serve up that many assists, passing out 68 assists vs. Sioux Falls on Nov. 11, 2014. 

RIGHT SIDE AND CONQUER: Junior right side hitter Sarah Kelly is third among active players in DII in career hitting percentage. Her .383 clip trails Brittany Deveaux of Bluefield State College by 19 points. Kelly hit .360 in back-to-back seasons and is more efficient this year as she has clubbed an astounding .417 while she has increased her kills per set by 65 points up to 3.64. Kelly conquered the NCAA II landscape attaining the Sports Imports/AVCA National Player of the Week on Oct. 17.

ONE-THOUSAND KILL CLUB WATCH: In addition, junior right side hitter Sarah Kelly is on the verge of becoming the next Bulldog attacker to eclipse the 1,000-kill milestone. The Chaska H.S. product is 17 kills away from becoming the 20th Bulldog to join the club. Sydnie Mauch was the 19th player in team history to join the prestigious club on Oct. 21, 2016 against Wayne State.

HEAD OF THE ROOKIE CLASS: Outside hitter Kate Berg has shown the tools to become a perennial threat the next three years with her play as a freshman. As the second option in the UMD attack, the native of Wayzata, Minn., leads all NSIC newcomers in a bevy of categories: kills per set (3.30), points per set (3.67), attacks per set (8.80), kills (361). Among all freshmen, she ranks ninth in the country in terms of total kills, 13th in points per set and 11th kills per set.

WHY SERVE TO HER: Teams have been picking on the freshman in the serve-receive game all season. Kate Berg has seen 547 serves come her direction, the most among any Bulldog. She only has 30 errors which is good for a .948-clip, the third best mark on the club. 

More importantly, Berg has translated her passing to quick kills. Forty-two percent of the time (232 kills) Berg has passed good balls to the setter for easy terminations.

MASTER OF ALL TRADES: Junior outside hitter Makenzie Morgen has been the most versatile player for UMD this season. Morgen is currently on pace at become the first Bulldog to average at least 3.00 kills per set and 3.00 digs per set since Kate Lange who accomplished that feat in 2011. She also has 41 aces from the service line this year. That is the most by a Bulldog since Kate Lange had 48 aces in 2011. 

DOUBLE-DOUBLE MACHINE: Junior outside hitter Makenzie Morgen has racked up 12 double-doubles. She has recorded a double-double in the last three matches before entering the NCAA Tournament.

Sept. 1- Nova Southeastern 11k-12d
Sept. 8- Lake Superior State 15k-13d
Sept. 9- Wisconsin-Parkside 12k-11d
Sept. 14- Minnesota Crookston 14k-10d
Sept. 19- St. Cloud State 12k-10d
Sept. 22- Wayne State 13k-18d
Sept. 23- Augustana 14k-11d
Oct. 7- Concordia-St. Paul 19k-16d
Oct. 27- MSU-Moorhead 15k-16d
Nov. 11- Wayne State 27k-24d
Nov. 15- Winona State 15k-16d
Nov. 18- Concordia-St. Paul 21k-12d

SURVEY SAYS: For roughly 15-plus years, the Bulldogs have been nationally ranked in the American Volleyball Coaches Association. UMD has been in every poll since it first appeared on Sept. 10, 2002, a stretch of 217 consecutive weeks. Only Central Missouri (ranked 19th) has a longer running active streak with 421.  The Bulldogs checked in as the seventh best team in the second-to-last poll.

Rank School                                     Points         Record

1         California Baptist (27)              1162              28-0
2         Southwest Minn. State (13)      1146             28-3
3         Concordia-St. Paul (7)             1101              28-3
4         Lewis (1)                                   1083             31-2
5         Western Washington                 996              25-3
6         Nebraska-Kearney                    896               33-3
7         Minnesota Duluth                    875               24-6
8         Arkansas Tech                          840               35-0
T-9      Palm Beach Atlantic                 787                25-3
T-9      Regis                                         787               28-3

BOOS CLUES: In his 16th year at the helm of the UMD volleyball program, Jim Boos has turn the volleyball club into a perennial national contender. Boos was hired on July 24, 2002 to become the fourth coach since 1976, succeeding Pati Rolf, and has become the longest tenured volleyball coach in the Bulldogs' 41-year history.
The native of Delafield, Wis. has produced a 429-77 record and has taken his club into the NCAA tournament every year expect the 2015 season being an illuminating one despite knocking off the eventual champions Wheeling Jesuit twice in the regular season.
UMD earned its inaugural trip to the NCAA II Elite Eight in 2004 before losing to eventual champions Barry University. Boos was given the prestigious accolade of AVCA Coach of the Year. Two years later, Boos and the Bulldogs would return with another deep postseason before falling to the University of Tampa, who would be crowned National Champions.
Boos has hand-crafted numerous players that have rewritten the record books, and have retooled the expectations set forth yearly by the program. To date, 22 individuals have accumulated AVCA All-American honors since Boos arrival. Each of the past 15 years, the Bulldogs have had at least one representative selected to the All-American team. 
Before his time at UMD, Boos served as an assistant coach at UW-Oshkosh for five years (1992-98) and assistant at North Dakota State University (1998-2001).

UP NEXT: The winner of the match will continue on to face the advancing team between Concordia-St. Paul and Missouri Western State on Saturday, Dec. 2 at 3:00 p.m. at the PE Gym in Marshall, Minn.