MOORHEAD, Minn. -- MSU Moorhead volleyball will defend their home court for the first time this season on Friday against the Wayne State College Wildcats. The Dragons will host the eighth-ranked Wildcats on Friday for a 6 p.m. showdown in Nemzek Fieldhouse. 

Live stats and video will be available at msumdragons.com. 
 
Dragons At A Glance

The Dragons have gone a solid 5-3 in non-conference play to start the year and speed towards conference play this week. This past week saw the Dragons add three victories to their resume. The first of which came against Cal State Dominguez Hills in a four-set match. MSUM bested the Toros in all categories: points, kills, aces, blocks, assists and digs. Sophomore Emily Ramsay had herself a game, scoring 16 kills, one service ace and 10 digs. Next, MSUM bested Cal Poly Humboldt in straight sets, 3-0.

The Dragons dominated the last two sets with a .391 hitting percentage mark in the second set, then followed it up with a .303 mark in the third set to close out the match. MSUM did drop a match to Colorado Mesa, but then bounced back to beat Adams State in four sets. Adams State won the first set, but a big performance from the Dragons, especially in the blocking category, helped MSUM earn a win. The Dragons tallied 16 blocks in the match, led by six block assists from freshman middle blocker Mya Pfeifer. 

The Dragons are coached by Kari Thompson in her second season.
 
Top Dragons

• Freshman outside hitter Brielle Riess – 82 kills, .205 hitting percentage, 17 service aces
• Sophomore outside hitter Emily Ramsay – 75 kills, 9 service aces, 75 digs
• Senior middle blocker Abby Thompson – 31 blocks, 61 kills, .331 hitting percentage
• Senior outside hitter Halle Erickson – 58 kills, 23 blocks, 2.07 kills per set
• Sophomore middle blocker Raiah Mandell – 27 kills, 21 blocks
• Freshman middle blocker Mya Pfeifer – 23 blocks, 21 kills

 
Scouting Wayne State

The eighth-ranked Wildcats (6-2) have one of the most highly-respected NCAA Division II volleyball programs in the nation. They were picked number one in the NSIC Preseason Coaches' Poll. They started the season ranked fourth in the country, however, they have dropped a little since losing two matches this past week. The Wildcats are very effective offensively, knocking down 13.7 kills per set. They are also very efficient too, as they have converted attacks at a .281 mark so far this season. Wayne State is fantastic defensively too, amassing 2.1 blocks per set and 15.2 digs per set. 

The Wildcats have a very lethal duo in senior middle/outside hitter Taya Beller and senior middle hitter Maggie Brahmer. Beller leads the team with 3.89 kills per set, and 105 total on the season while still managing a .382 hitting percentage. While Brahmer leads the team in efficiency, hitting at a crazy .507 clip totaling 84 kills, she also adds 21 blocks.

The Wildcats are led by 20^th-year man Scott Kneifl.