The University of Minnesota Duluth Volleyball Team (17-8, 10-8 NSIC) closes out its regular-season schedule this weekend when it hosts Winona State and No. 6 Concordia-St. Paul at Romano Gymnasium. The Bulldogs will face the Warriors Friday night at 6 p.m., before hosting the Golden Bears Saturday at 2 p.m. in their home finale. Saturday will also serve as UMD's Senior Night and Alumni Night and will be broadcast live on My9 Sports. 

CURTAIN CALL: The contest against Concordia-St. Paul will be the final regular-season home match for UMD's lone senior Kylie Broten. The middle blocker will be honored in a Senior Day ceremony at the conclusion of the match.   

WELCOME BACK: The Bulldogs will also welcome back their alumni for Saturday's match, with a number of familiar faces making their way back to Romano Gymnasium, including: Emily Balts Torve (2016-19), Stephanie Brown Bruins (2007-11), Madison Gordon (2018-23), Hannah Johnson Wright (2007-11), Mandy Kurosky Chinander (2015-19), Kate Lange Sterns (2010-13), Rachel Langseth Brang (2003-06), Allison Olley (2013-17), Julie Rainey Visger (2011-14) and Abby Thor (2016-19).

LAST TIME OUT: UMD dropped a pair of three-set, top-25 road battles last weekend at No. 10 St. Cloud State and at No. 24 Minnesota State in NSIC action. Freshman Brietta Tims led the Bulldogs with 15 kills, an average of 2.50 per set, while senior Kylie Broten hit .423 with 13 kills and four blocks on the weekend. The two losses extended the Bulldogs' losing streak to five matches, their only losing streak this season. 

SCOUTING WINONA STATE: The Warriors make their way to Duluth with a 15-11 overall record and a 10-8 NSIC record. They have won five of their last six matches, which includes sweeps over visiting MSU Moorhead and Minnesota Crookston last weekend. Kenna Kornely leads the offense with a 3.66 kills-per-set average, she also ranks fifth in the NSIC in points with 4.08 per set. Anna Hennessy is the team leader in digs per set with 4.00 and Gianna Vollrath boasts a team-high 1.11 blocks per set average. 

UMD vs. WINONA STATE
Record: 80-6    Last: 11.16.24    Result: L, 1-3 (25-22, 27-29, 21-25, 13-25)    Streak: L2
The Bulldogs are 2-3 in the teams' last five meetings, but hold an 80-6 advantage in the all-time series vs. the Warriors. Last season, Madeline Guetzkow had 10 kills and two block assists, Kylie Broten had five kills and eight block assists and Ava Jones had a team-best 22 assists in the season-finale against Winona State at Romano Gym.    

SCOUTING CONCORDIA-ST. PAUL: The Golden Bears rank No. 6 in the latest AVCA Top-25 Poll, and enter the weekend having won 11-straight matches dating back to Oct. 11 vs. Sioux Falls. Of its 22 wins this season, 18 have come in straight sets. CSP is tied for first in NSIC standings and leads the league in points per set (19.02), kills per set (14.91), hitting percentage (.303) and assists per set (13.90). Makenna Nold leads the team and the league in kills with 4.33 per set and points with 5.26 per set, she also leads CSP in blocks per set (0.89). Cassie Sieling boasts a team-high 4.17 digs per set average. 

UMD vs. CSP
Record: 28-35    Last: 11.8.24    Result: L, 1-3 (17-25, 25-17, 15-25, 20-25)    Streak: L10
The Bulldogs have lost 10-straight matches vs. the Golden Bears, with their last win coming on Sept. 8, 2019 at Romano Gym. Concordia-St. Paul was ranked No. 6 in that contest, as well. In the teams' last meeting back in 2024, Madeline Guetzkow had 10 kills and four block assists and Kylie Broten added five kills and five block assists. Ava Jones had a team-high 23 assists and added seven digs.  

ALL-NSIC ACCOLADES: UMD had four players earn 2025 All-Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) accolades, league officials announced Thursday. Senior Kylie Broten, juniors Madeline Guetzkow and Paige Decker and sophomore Ava Jones were each named to the All-NSIC Second Team, as selected by league head coaches. It was the first all-conference recognition for each player.

BULLDOGS RECEIVING VOTES: UMD dropped out of the Top-25 in the latest AVCA/TARAFLEX Division II Poll released Monday, but continue to receive votes. The Bulldogs earned 19 points this week after receiving 97 points in last week's poll when they were ranked No. 25. UMD's highest ranking this season was No. 13 in the Week 5 poll on Oct. 6. 

HOME SWEET HOME: The Bulldogs are 10-1 at Romano Gym this season, which includes a 7-1 record in league home contests. When playing in front of its home crowd, UMD is averaging 14.45 kills per set to its opponents' 10.37 kills per set, with a .291 hitting percentage compared to its opponents' .150 attack percentage. The Bulldogs are also averaging 15.37 digs per set and 2.29 blocks per set when playing at home. 

DOUBLE-DIGIT DIGS: Junior libero Madison Reed has tallied 10 or more digs in 21 of UMD's 25 matches this season, including in nine of her last 10 matches. She ranks fifth in the NSIC and 63rd in NCAA Division II with a 4.55 digs-per-set average. Her career-high 33 digs at Wayne State on Sept. 26 is the third-highest total in NSIC matches this season.    

COUNTDOWN TO 500 KILLS: Madeline Guetzkow is 10 kills away from reaching 500 career kills. The junior is averaging 3.17 kills per set this season and has totaled 247 kills in 22 matches, a mark that surpassed her season total of 215 kills from the 2024 season.  

LET ME HELP YOU: Setter Ava Jones surpassed 1,000 assists for the season in the Bulldogs' match at No. 24 Minnesota State last week. The sophomore enters the weekend with 1,031 on the year and 1,530 for her career. The last time a UMD setter had 1,000 assists in a season was Madison Gordon in 2023 with 1,100 assists. 

DIGGIN IT: UMD totaled 107 digs in its contest at No. 14 Wayne State on Sept. 26, its most in a single match since Oct. 28, 2006 when it tallied 108 digs vs. Augustana. The total also ties for the 30th most in a five-set match in NCAA Division II this season. 

BOOS IN NCAA DII TOP-SIX: UMD head coach Jim Boos ranks sixth among active NCAA Division II volleyball coaches and 15th among all active NCAA volleyball coaches with an .806 winning percentage. His 586 wins rank 12th among active DII coaches. He ranks 52nd among all active NCAA volleyball coaches in career wins. 

BULLDOGS IN THE NCAA RANKINGS: UMD enters the weekend with multiple players ranked among the NCAA's best. Ava Jones ranks ninth in assists per set (11.21) and 14th in total assists (1,031), while Kylie Broten ranks 16th with a .388 hitting percentage.  As a team, UMD ranks 17th in assists per set (13.02), 19th in hitting percentage (.257) and 22nd in kills per set (13.91). 

AGAINST THE TOP 25: UMD is 1-6 when facing teams ranked in the Top 25 this season, however, it has averaged more kills per set (13.60 to 13.28), more assists per set (12.96 to 11.84) and more digs per set (16.12 to 15.64) than those opponents. Madeline Guetzkow averages a team-best 3.04 kills per set, Madison Reed averages 4.60 digs per set and Paige Decker averages 0.91 blocks per set vs. ranked opponents.  

ABOVE AVERAGE: Elyse Karrels notched a .750 attack percentage at Bemidji State Oct. 21, a mark that currently ranks fifth in NCAA Division II on a minimum 20 attempts. She joins Kylie Broten on the list, whose .696 average vs. MSU Moorhead is tied for the 10th highest in that category this season. Broten also ranks ninth on 15-19 attempts with her .737 hitting percentage vs. Missouri-St. Louis on Sept. 9, while Paige Decker joins her at No. 12 on that list with her .733 hitting percentage vs. Bemidji State on Sept. 23.