THE OPENING SERVE: It's a Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference Thursday Tilt between the No. 15 University of Minnesota Duluth and Bemidji State University. The Bulldogs look to capture their first conference win of the year as they head west for a matchup against the Beavers. First serve at the BSU Gymnasium in Bemidji, Minn., takes place at 6:00 p.m.

SCOUTING REPORT ON BEMIDJI STATE: The Beavers are 5-3 overall heading into their NSIC and home opener. Bemidji State lost to then-No. 19 Grand Valley State in straight sets last time out to close out a 3-1 weekend at the 2024 Hampton Inn and Suites Grand Rapids Downtown Classic. Ashley Crowl leads the Beavers with 3.31 kills/set as the main outside hitter. Rylie Bjerklie is the secondary attacking option with 2.81 kills/set and is hitting .307 on the season. Emily Wade is the BSU setter dishing out 8.31 assists/set. Three Beavers average over 2.00 digs.set with Jada Wlodarczyk leading the squad with 3.63 digs/set. Zayda Priebe leads the team with 1.00 blocks/set. As a team, the Beavers are hitting .178, good for 12th among fellow NSIC clubs and they average 11.53 kills/set, also good for 12th in the NSIC. 

THE SERIES: Here is how UMD has fared against its opponents all time in program history dating back to 1976.
 

TEAM	ALL-TIME RECORD	LAST MEETING
vs. BSU	98-3	W, 3-1 (Oct. 3, 2023)

HOW THEY RANK: Here is how UMD and the other two teams stack up with their records this season and their ranking in the AVCA Preseason Coaches Poll.
 

TEAM	RECORD	AVCA RANKING
UMD	7-2	15th
BSU	5-3	NR

I'M YELLIN' TIMBER: The Beavers have lost the last 36 head-to-head showdowns to the Bulldogs. UMD has won a grand total of 98 times, the most over any one opponent in school history. The last time UMD dropped a match to Bemidji State was back on Sept. 19, 1998 in a five-set setback.

LAST SIDE OUT: The Bulldogs dropped both matches last week to begin NSIC action. Winona State University was able to pull off an upset in five sets on its home floor. Then-No. 10 ranked Concordia University, St. Paul defeated UMD, coming back down 2-0, to spoil the home opener. 

UMD hit a season low .077 against the Warriors and accounted for 37 hitting errors. Sophomore middle blocker Madeline Guetzkow led UMD with 13 kills while sophomore middle blocker Paige Decker tallied a season high 11 kills. Freshman setter Ava Jones led the team in assists (25) for the first time in her colliegiate career. Graduate libero Kaylyn Madison racked up a season-high 30 digs, the first 30-dig performance of the season, and graduate outside hitter Cianna Selbitschka nabbed 28 digs, a new personal best.

Selbitschka and senior setter Maddi Kealy each registered double-doubles versus the Golden Bears with Selbitchska and Guetzkow each tallying a team-high 12 kills.Kealy had 27 assists to go along with 12 digs. Senior right side hitter Samantha Paulsen garnered a team-high six blocks 

GOING THE DISTANCE: The last two matches have gone all the way, needing five sets to reach a decision and the Bulldogs have played in three five-set matches in their first nine matchups. UMD is 1-2 in those five-set thrillers with the lone win happening at Texas A&M University-Kingsville in the Javelina Volleyball Classic to begin the campaign. 

ALL-TOURNAMENT HONORS: Senior right side hitter Samantha Paulsen was bestowed as the Most Valuable Player in the UP North Tournament. Paulsen, along with graduate outside hitter Cianna Selbitschka, were both named to the seven-player All-Tournament team. Paulsen, the product of Chisago Lakes H.S., paced UMD in kills/set (3.82), hitting percentage (.425) and blocks/set (0.91) for the weekend. She posted 19 kills against Northern Michigan -- tying her career high outing -- and tallied 15 kills and a weekend-high six blocks versus then-ranked No. 20 Michigan Tech.

DOUBLE 1K CLUB: Graduate outside hitter Cianna Selbitschka etched another milestone to her name against Southern Nazarene earlier this season as she recorded her 1,000th career dig. Selbitschka became just the 11th Bulldog to eclipse 1,000 kills and 1,000 digs in their Bulldog career. Kate Berg was the last to reach the honor back in 2021.

CLIMBING THE RANKS: Graduate outside hitter Cianna Selbitschka became the 23rd Bulldog to register 1,000 career kills on Oct. 25, 2023. Selbitschka paced UMD in the kills category for a second consecutive season and is racing up the charts for most kills in program history. The North Branch, Minn., native currently sits 13th with 1,209 kills. She passed April Hansen (2007-11), who had 1,134 kills, for the sole possession of 13th in the opening weekend. Next on the list is Kari Wolford (2004-07) at 12th place in Bulldog history with 1,250 kills (60 away).

REACHING NEW HEIGHTS: Graduate outside hitter Cianna Selbitschka is also climbing the charts among active leaders in the Division II landscape. For her career, Selbitschka is 17th in  kills/set (3.54), 19th in kills (1,209), and 25th in attacks (3,175).

CAN YOU DIG IT: Graduate defensive specialist Kaylyn Madison is 34th among active Division II players with 1,264 digs.

CLIMBING THE RANKS II: Graduate defensive specialist Kaylyn Madison has amassed 1,264 digs during her collegiate career including a season-high 499 just last season. The native of Eagan, Minn., needs just two more defensive stops to slide into  top 10 of the program record for digs in a career. Callie Zwettler (2001-04) scooped up 1,265 digs during her tenure and currently holds the No. 10 spot.

SERVICE WITH A SMILE: The Bulldogs are averaging 1.83 aces/set this season which currently ranks third in the NSIC.

POCKET ACES: Graduate defensive specialist Kaylyn Madison and freshman setter Ava Jones are ranked in the top five among the conference in aces per set. They both rank third among all NSIC players at 0.53 aces/set. Jones also ranks sixth among all Division II freshmen in the category as well. 

BOMBS AWAY: The UMD offense is currently 14th in the nation in hitting percentage.The Bulldogs are hitting .271 after nine matches and have hit above .300 on six occasions this season. Barry University holds the top slot at .361. In the five set win over Texas A&M-Kingsville, the Bulldogs hit .355 for the match, the second-best hitting percentage in a five set match this season.

TRIPLE THREAT: Three attackers rank in the top 100 of all players in terms of hitting percentage in Division II. Senior right side hitter Samantha Paulsen, sophomore middle blocker Madeline Guetzkow and sophomore middle blocker Paige Decker are all hitting at least .329. Paulsen leads the team with a .384 hitting clip which is also good for seventh in the NSIC.

SAM I AM: Senior right side hitter Samantha Paulsen leads the team averaging 3.00 kills/set, which would be her career best for a season. Paulsen is 11th in the NSIC and she matched her single-match best performance with 19 kills versus Northern Michigan.

BOOS' CLUES: The long-standing bench boss patrolling the UMD sidelines returns for his 23rd year. Jim Boos has placed himself into the upper echelon as the all-time winningest coach for the volleyball program, notching 561 victories along the way. The 2004 AVCA National Coach of the Year has made 19 NCAA Tournament appearances and is 13th among active Division II coaches in terms of wins. Boos is seventh among active Division II coaches with the most wins at one institution. Only three other active Division II coaches have a higher winning percentage (.821) with at least five accrued seasons. 

NATIONAL SURVEY SAYS!: The American Volleyball Coaches Association released the newest edition of the Division II Top 25 Poll on Monday. The Bulldogs were 15th in the poll, dropping four spots from last week. Tampa University is No. 1 for the third week in a row with 1,163 points and 43 out of the possible 47 first-place votes. Metropolitan State University Denver and California State Polytechnic University, Pomona each received a pair of first-place votes. 

ON TAP: The Bulldogs will conclude their non-conference portion of their schedule with a road bout with intrastate rival No. 10 St. Cloud State University on Tuesday, Oct. 1. First serve against the Huskies will start at 6:00 p.m. at Halenbeck Hall in St. Cloud, Minn.