MOORHEAD, Minn. -- The MSU Moorhead volleyball team faces down a couple of very talented teams for their weekend road trip. First traveling to St. Cloud State to take on the sixth-ranked Huskies on Friday in a 6 p.m. matchup. They will then hit the road again up to Duluth to take on the seventh-ranked UMD Bulldogs on Saturday at 2 p.m.

Live stats and video are available at msumdragons.com
 
About the Dragons

MSUM (4-6, 1-1 NSIC) picked up a win last week against the Golden Eagles of Minnesota Crookston, sweeping the match 3-0. The Dragons dropped their other match in a bittersweet five-set thriller against Bemidji State, 3-2. In the loss to Bemidji State, the Dragons went down 0-2 in the first two sets, with the Beavers looking quite formidable. MSUM came up short in the first set 26-24, and the second set did not go any better with a 25-18 result. However, the Dragons battled and won the next two sets: 25-22 and 25-19. Senior middle blocker Tori Thompson lead the way in the comeback with 10 kills while also not committing a single error. However, even this effort was not enough in the fifth set in which the Beavers took 15-10. 

In their match against Crookston, which the Dragons won 3-0, many Dragons played lights out. Headlining this group of players was freshman outside hitter Maci Martini. She led the team in kills with nine, while also tallying four digs. Freshman setter Madi Colby also had a good day with 23 set assists and eight digs. Sophomore libero Emily Ramsay led the team in digs with 18. Senior outside hitter Bridget Witzmann, junior middle blocker Abby Thompson and Tori Thompson also had a good game, combining for 19 kills. Junior outside hitter Jadyn Feist had a .375 hitting percentage, which was the best on the team. She also added four kills and three solo blocks.

The Dragons are coached by first-year head coach Kari Thompson.
 
Scouting Saint Cloud State

The sixth-ranked Huskies (9-2, 2-0 NSIC) come into this week as one of the nation's top teams. They have won both of their first two conference matches 3-0, so they will be a tough challenge for the Dragons on Friday. Their kill leader so far is senior outside hitter Kenzie Foley with a staggering 174. Their setter is sophomore Emma Berran and she has racked up a total of 414 set assists so far. She is also their best serving the ball, with .46 service aces per set. They also have a couple of formidable middle blockers in freshman Hannah Bruskiewicz and redshirt sophomore Sam Zimmerman. They both have 25.0, and 23.0 blocks respectively.

The Huskies are coached by Chad Braegelmann.
 
Scouting University of Minnesota Duluth

The seventh-ranked Bulldogs (9-1, 2-0 NSIC) also present a very talented roster this year. They have also won their first two conference matchups, against UMary 3-0 and Minot 3-0. As a team, they swing for a .266 hitting percentage, all while holding their opponents to .142. Their best hitters are senior Cianna Selbitschka with 125 kills and junior Samantha Paulsen with 97 kills. Setting for the Bulldogs is senior Madison Gordon and she has accumulated 374 set assists so far this season through 10 games. Defensively for the Bulldogs, senior defensive specialist Kaylyn Madison leads the team in digs with 182. In the blocks category, senior middle blocker Hope Schjenken leads her squad with 32.

The Bulldogs are coached by Jim Boos.