THE OPENING SERVE: With a 15-game home winning streak on the line, the University of Minnesota Duluth will be put to the test once again with Augustana University and Wayne State College making a visit to Romano Gymasium this weekend for Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference action. The No. 5 Bulldogs (12-3; 6-1 NSIC) do battle with the Vikings on Friday night (6:00 p.m.) before engaging with the Wildcats Saturday (4:00 p.m.).

SCOUTING REPORT ON AUGUSTANA: The Vikings (5-10;  0-7 NSIC) are still winless in the NSIC after coming off losses last weekend to Winona State (3-1) on Friday, and to Upper Iowa (3-0) on Saturday. Countney Place has been the offensive player the Vikings have relied on this season. Place has 35 percent of the team's kills and is averaging 4.28 kills per set. Place recorded double-doubles in the last four matches including a pair of 20-plus kill efforts. Kaylea Ahrens holds down the back line with 4.14 digs per set.

SCOUTING REPORT ON WAYNE STATE: The Wildcats (11-4; 4-3 NSIC) swept Chadron State after spliting NSIC contests with Winona State and Upper Iowa. Katie Stephens is leading the way with 2.77 kills per set.  She is second is digs per set at 2.70 behind Haley Kauth, who has 4.54 digs per set. Wayne State has the best blocking unit in the NSIC. It is eighth in the country at 2.61 blocks per set. Led by Tarrin Beller  (1.28) and Jaci Brahmer (1.25), those two are each in the top 20 nationally on an individual level. 

THE SERIES: The Bulldogs are 32-10 against Augustana. Last season, the Vikings split in the regular season with UMD. Augustana loss on the road then returned the favor in November in Sioux Falls. The last four meetings have all gone four sets.

Against Wayne State, The Bulldogs are 28-8 in 36 meetings. UMD swept Wayne State last season with a four-set victory at home and winning a five-set match in Wayne. The WIldcats last defeated the Bulldogs in 2016 in the NSIC Tournament.

HOW THEY RANK: Here is how UMD and its opponents this weekend stack up in their overall records, the NSIC standings and in the AVCA poll.
TEAM            RECORD        NSIC            AVCA
UMD                 12-3             T-2nd              5th
AUGIE               5-9              T-15th             NR
WSC                 11-4              T-7th              NR

THE BROADCAST: All NSIC matches throughout the season will be carried live through a video stream with the play-by-play call by Josh Wallace, in addition to live stats, and is available for free at: 
portal.stretchinternet.com/umd

LAST TIME OUT: UMD defeated Minot State and UMary last weekend on the road. Junior outside hitter Hanna Meyer pounded a career high 18 kills in the 3-0 win over Minot State. Kate Berg recorded a double-double with 11 kills and 10 digs and also had five blocks and a career high four aces in the victory over UMary.

HOME COOKIN': Since Romano Gymnasium opened in 1977, the Bulldogs have an overall record of 396-62 overall, winning 86.4 percent of their home matches. The most recent era has been lethal, posting a 74-8 record the last six-plus years. UMD has gone undefeated at home nine times, and has recorded at least double-digits victories in a season on 20 occasions. 

HOME COOKIN' II: The Bulldogs have won 15 straight home matches dating back to the 3-1 win over Minnesota State on Nov. 5, 2016.

NSIC PLAYER OF THE WEEK HONORS: For the first time this season, junior setter Emily Torve was the first Bulldog to be bestowed an NSIC weekly honor. Torve was selected the conference's Setter of the Week on Monday after dishing out 117 assists over nine sets and averaged an NSIC-high 13.00 assists per set. She also recorded 28 digs (3.11 per set), 3 kills, 3 aces and a pair of blocks. Torve posted a double-double in each match
Against MSU Moorhead on Friday, Torve compiled 53 assists and 13 digs and backed that up the next day with 64 assists and 15 digs against Northern State. Her 64 assists -- one shy of her career high -- was the second most set assists in the NSIC this season.

SURVEY SAYS: For roughly 16-plus years, the Bulldogs have been nationally ranked in the American Volleyball Coaches Association. UMD jumped up four spots after dethroning Northern State. The Bulldogs have been in every poll since it first appeared on Sept. 10, 2002 -- a stretch of 224 consecutive weeks. No other team has a longer active streak.
 

Rank	School (First-Place Votes)	Points	Record
1	Concordia-St. Paul (42)	1191	13-2
2	Cal State San Bernardino (3)	1101	13-1
3	Northern State (1)	1036	14-1
4	Nebraska Kearney (1)	1019	16-1
5	UMD	891	12-3
6	Ferris State	862	12-3
7	Western Washington	850	11-3
8	Tampa	833	13-1
9	Palm Beach Atlantic	798	14-1
10	Drury	752	12-2

DIG IT UP: Junior defensive specialist Keena Seiffert has 4.14 digs per set this season, up .86 per set from last season. Seiffert has a streak of 10 straight 10-plus digs. She tied her career mark on Friday with a 25-dig effort against MSU Moorhead. Seiffert has at least 12 digs in the last 10 matches.

SERVE'S UP: Freshman defensive specialist Sydney Lanoue has been rock solid in serve reception committing only a single error in 142 attempts. Lanoue has successfully passed the last 110 serves going back 40 sets.

BLOCK PARTY: The Bulldogs have 113 blocks on the season, good for 46th nationally. On average, UMD records about seven blocks per game.

BLOCK PARTY II: The Bulldogs are averaging 2.22 per set, which is also good for fourth in the conference and 30th in the nation.

ON LOCKDOWN: Teams are hitting .126 on the Bulldogs this season. St. Cloud State hit .270 against UMD, by far the highest mark allowed by the Bulldogs all season. The other 14 clubs have hit .194 or under against the UMD defense. The .126 mark is the 40th best in Division II and second in the NSIC behind Northern State (.120).

CHASING THE 1,000-KILL CLUB: Senior outside hitter Makenzie Morgen would be in line to become the next Bulldog to hit the 1,000 kill mark. Morgen has 1,147 kills combining her playing days with the University of Maryland Baltimore County. Currently, the Appleton, Wis., native is 121 kills away from becoming the 21st member of the Bulldog club.

MOVING UP THE 1,000-KILL CLUB CHARTS: Senior right side hitter Sarah Kelly joined a distinctive group of 19 other Bulldogs to achieve at least 1,000 kills. Kelly has 1,111 kills for her career moving her past Monica Turner for 12th amongst the program. She is 24 kills from passing April Hansen for 11th. 

LIGHT IT UP: Senior right side hitter Sarah Kelly is second in the nation among active career hitting percentages. Kelly is hitting .379 for her career which is 14 points off junior Julianne Miller from Azusa Pacific. As it stands, the Chaska, Minn., native is on pace to scatter the best UMD mark set at .361 by both Monica Turner and Sarah Wyffels.  

SET IT AND FORGET IT: Junior setter Emily Torve moved up to ninth all-time among set assists at UMD last year and currently sits with 3,313. Tammy Wermager is eighth on the UMD charts with 3,513.

THE COMPLETE SET: On a national stage, junior setter Emily Torve has the reputation of directing a few of the nation's best hitters and offenses during her stint. The Bulldogs have had the fifth and fourth best offensive  hitting percentages the past two seasons. Pile those successes and Torve has the second highest assists per set among active setters. Her 12.93 clip is .07 off the pace set by Northern State's Ashley Rozell.

UP NEXT: The Bulldogs welcome Concordia-St. Paul to Romano Gymnasium for a non-conference matchup Wednesday, Oct. 3.