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What's Ahead
MOORHEAD, Minn. – With two weeks remaining in the regular season, the Minnesota State University Moorhead volleyball team will play three matches this week, one at home and two on the road. The Dragons are 3-4 at home and 2-6 on the road this season. In October, MSUM is 3-6.
First, on Tuesday night, the Northern State volleyball team will come to Alex Nemzek Fieldhouse to face the Dragons. The Wolves lead the all-time series between MSUM and NSU 47-18. Earlier this season, on Sept. 16, the Dragons traveled to Aberdeen and lost to the Wolves in four sets. Senior Maggie Gruber had 16 kills in the match and junior Amber Krenkse contributed 21 digs. NSU has dropped from the national rankings since the meeting in Aberdeen, but still owns a 16-7 record overall and a 9-6 NSIC record. Last week, the Wolves lost to Minnesota Duluth in three sets and defeated St. Cloud State in four sets. The Northern State offense has been impressive this season, ranking third in the NSIC in hitting percentage at .278, third in assists per set at 13.42, and fourth in kills per set at 13.99. NSIC Preseason Player of the year Kelsey Chambers leads the attack with 328 kills this season (3.90 per set). Cari McGarvie leads the Wolves defense with 83 total blocks this season (1.00 per set).
Next, the Dragons will travel to Fayette, Iowa to face the Upper Iowa volleyball team on Friday night. In 15 matches between the two schools, MSUM leads the all-time series 12-3. On Sept. 27, the Dragons defeated Upper Iowa in four sets. VanWinkle matched a career high in the match with 20 kills while junior Casie Baer added 26 assists. Upper Iowa has run into tough stretches this season and has lost its last five matches heading into the week. Last week, the Peacocks were defeated by Augustana in four sets and Wayne State in three sets. The Peacocks have been impressive defensively this season, especially in the back row. They are leading the NSIC in digs per set as a team at 17.83. Amanda Weiss leads the back row with 426 digs (4.73 per set) and is ranked fifth in the NSIC. Jennifer Mundt leads the Peacock's offense attack with 345 kills this season (3.92 per set).
Lastly, the Dragons visit Winona, Minn. to face the Winona State volleyball team on Saturday afternoon. The Dragons lead the all-time series between MSUM and WSU 62-30. On Sept. 26 of this season, Winona State swept MSUM in three sets in Moorhead. Gruber had 19 kills to lead the Dragons and senior Sam Sullivan posted 16 assists. After starting red hot at 10-1, the Warriors have cooled off a bit in the ever challenging NSIC. Winona State is 15-6 and 10-5 in the NSIC. Last week, Winona State lost to Wayne State in four sets and defeated Augustana in five sets. The Warriors are led by a host of freshman and sophomores who have helped Winona State into the top five in the conference. Danielle Rampart ranks fourth in the NSIC at 3.99 kills per set, posting 299 total kills this season while Jamie Cairncross leads WSU in the back row with 330 digs (4.40 per set).
A Look Back at Last Week
Last week, MSUM split two matches at home. The Dragons defeated St. Cloud State in three sets on Friday night and lost to No. 2-ranked Minnesota Duluth in four sets on Saturday afternoon.
On Friday, led by senior Maggie Gruber's 15 kills, the Dragons defeated St. Cloud State in three straight sets. MSUM took the sets from the Huskies 25-20, 25-20, and 30-28. In addition to Gruber's big night, senior Sam Sullivan posted a season-high 25 assists in the victory. The Dragons trailed 10-9 in the first set before the Dragons made four runs of three consecutive points to take control of the set and win 25-20. The Huskies led again in the second set 4-1 before the Dragons scored four straight to take the lead and went on to take the set 25-20. The third set was tightly contested and went well beyond 25 while both teams traded points back-and-forth. Gruber put away the final two points of the set on kills to take the set 30-28.
Next, on Saturday the No. 2-ranked team in the nation, Minnesota Duluth visited Moorhead and beat the Dragons in four sets. The Dragons came out strong and took the first set 25-17 before UMD regrouped and won the next three sets 25-13, 25-19, and 25-19. Junior Kaitlin VanWinkle led the way fro the Dragons with 13 kills while hitting .345 on 29 attack attempts. Junior Casie Baer contributed 22 assists in the match. MSUM utilized a six-point stretch in the first set to lead 15-9 and held onto the lead in the first set 25-17. The Bulldogs came out looking for revenge in the second set, taking a 13-2 lead early before taking the set 25-13. UMD used that momentum to take the next two sets as well and the match in four sets.
VanWinkle Reaches Another Milestone
2014 has been VanWinkle's best season as a Dragon so far and she has added another milestone to add to her already impressive career. VanWinkle, who is already eighth in block assists in Dragon history, is in the top-10 in Dragon history in her second category, solo blocks. She is now ranked ninth with 62; surpassing Lisa Jorgenson (1985-86) who had 59 and Amy Gernard (1991-92) who had 61. Third place in solo blocks is not out-of-reach for VanWinkle. She needs 21 more to tie for third place at 83. Right now, she is averaging just over 20 solo blocks a season and has 21 in 2014. With five matches left in the year and all of 2015 left, another year like '14 and VanWinkle will reach that mark.
Senior Shine in Win over Huskies
MSUM has only two seniors this year, Maggie Gruber and Sam Sullivan. Those two led the Dragons in the victory over St. Cloud State on Friday night. Gruber led all players with 15 kills in the match, including scoring the last two points of the third set to clinch the victory for the Dragons. Gruber hit .259 in the match on 27 attack attempts. Sullivan posted a season-high 25 assists and added two service aces, both highs for the team.
