The University of Minnesota Duluth (4-0, 0-0 NSIC) volleyball team travels to Pueblo, Colo., to participate in the inaugural Royce Cappis Invitational hosted by CSU-Pueblo at Massari Arena. The Bulldogs will open the event against Fort Lewis College Friday at 10 a.m. CST, before taking on the host ThunderWolves at 2:30 p.m. CST. UMD will conclude the tournament Saturday with matches against Adelphi at 9 a.m. CST and Florida Tech at 3:45 p.m. CST.

LAST TIME OUT: The Bulldogs went 4-0 at the UP North Tournament hosted by Northern Michigan at Vandement Arena in Marquette, Mich. They opened the event with a five-set win over Michigan Tech, before sweeping Cal State East Bay Friday morning. They beat the host Wildcats in four sets on Friday night and wrapped the tournament with a sweep of Tiffin on Saturday morning. Freshman Kenzie Kiminski led UMD in kills in three of the four matches, which included a double-double with 22 kills and 12 digs against the Huskies in the season opener. 

IN THE POLLS: After opening the season undefeated, UMD is receiving 47 votes in the Aug. 31 AVCA-Taraflex Division II Women's Volleyball Poll, up 38 votes from its standing in the Preseason Poll. The Bulldogs last appeared in the Top 25 last season on Nov. 3, 2025 at No. 25.

ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM: Freshman Kenzie Kiminski and junior Ava Jones were named to the UP North All-Tournament Team. Kiminski was one of the Bulldogs' top offensive weapons throughout the weekend, leading the team with 3.53 kills and 3.97 points per set, while adding 2.07 digs and 0.73 blocks per set. Jones was equally instrumental in UMD's 4-0 start, directing an offense that hit .269 over the four matches. The junior averaged 11.47 assists per set and finished the weekend with 172 assists, 27 digs, 10 service aces and six total blocks.  

RACKING UP DOUBLE-DOUBLES: Through four matches the Bulldogs have already racked up six double-doubles on the season, including three from senior Madeline Guetzkow, two from sophomore Brietta Tims and one from freshman Kenzie Kiminski in her collegiate debut. 

COUNTDOWN TO 2K: Ava Jones enters the Royce Cappis Invitational just 165 assists away from 2,000 assists for her career. She is averaging 11.47 assists per set in 2026, a mark that ranks No. 9 in NCAA Division II and No. 3 in the NSIC. Her 172 total assists also ranks 10th nationally.   

MILESTONE NO. 500: Senior Madison Reed secured the 500th dig of her career in UMD's four-set win over Northern Michigan on Aug. 28. The libero posted a season-high 22 digs in the match and now enters this weekend with 527 for her career.   

CLOSING IN ON WIN 600: Head coach Jim Boos is in his 25th season at the helm of the UMD volleyball team and garners a 591-143 career record. The skipper is just nine wins away from securing milestone win No. 600 and becoming just the 11th active NCAA Division II women's volleyball head coach to win 600 games. His .805 career winning percentage ranks fifth among active DII head coaches. 

SCOUTING FORT LEWIS: The Skyhawks enter the Royce Cappis Invitational with a 1-3 record following play at the Kathleen Brasfield Invitational in San Angelo, Texas to open the 2026 season. Fort Lewis was swept by UT Permain Basin and No. 21 Angelo State, before picking up a sweep vs. East Central. It closed out the tournament with a four-set loss to MSU Moorhead. Jordan DeJesus leads the Skyhawks offensively with a 2.62 kills-per-set average, while Alex Daugherty has a team-best 61 digs and seven service aces. 

SCOUTING CSU PUEBLO: The ThunderWolves also posted a 1-3 record at the Kathleen Brasfield Invitational in San Angelo, Texas to open the 2026 season. A five-set win over East Central started their season, but three-straight losses to MSU-Moorhead, Texas Permian Basin and No. 21 Angelo State concluded their weekend. Lilly Zwart and Chinaru Pao were each named to the All-Tournament Team, with Zwart averaging 2.94 kills per set and 15 total blocks. Pao averaged a team-high 3.94 digs per set and added 11 assists. 

SCOUTING ADELPHI: The Panthers hosted the Paws Up Classic to kick off their 2026 season, taking on a pair of top-10 teams in No. 2 Tampa and No. 9 Wayne State. Adelphi was swept in both matches, before bouncing back with a 3-1 win over Georgian Court University. It wrapped the event with a three-set loss to American International College. Madeleine Chaapel led the way for the Panthers offensively with 2.82 kills per set and Ada Isik had a team-leading 4.23 digs per set over the four matches. 

SCOUTING FLORIDA TECH: The Panthers enter the weekend with a 1-2 record following play at the Embry-Riddle Bahama House Classic in Daytona Beach, Fla. They opened the season with a sweep of Edward Waters University, before falling in back-to-back four-set matches to St. Edward's University and No. 16 Missouri Western. Cordelia Kearns led the team with 4.27 kills per set at the event, while Brooke Menke notched 3.73 digs per set. Three players averaged 1.09 blocks per set in Scarlett Kimbrell, Isabelle Clark and Olivia Bush. 

UMD VS. ROYCE CAPPIS INVITATIONAL OPPONENTS: The Bulldogs are a combined 66-25 all-time vs. their opponents at the UP North Tournament. Here's the breakdown:
vs. Fort Lewis: First Meeting
vs. CSU-Pueblo: First Meeting
vs. Adelphi: 2-0 (last meeting, 2025)
vs. Florida Tech: 0-1 (last meeting, 1977)