WINONA, Minn. – With one month down in the 2018 campaign, Winona State University is playing its best volleyball of the season and hits the road this weekend for its longest road trip of the year. The Warriors carry a two-match winning streak into the weekend against a pair of opponents WSU has historically dominated.
The Warriors travel to Minot State on Friday night for a 6 p.m. match and conclude the trip with an 11 a.m. first serve at UMary on Saturday. Winona State owns a combined 24-4 record all-time against the two NSIC foes.
WSU (6-9, 3-4 NSIC) has won three of its last four matches overall, including a pair of wins over Top-25 opponents. Last weekend, the Warriors took down Augustana and No. 18 Wayne State at home in four sets apiece. Winona State also owns a straight-set win over No. 7 SMSU during its current run.
Senior Taylor Goar has been at the forefront of the Warriors' recent success as she has returned to the front row and continued her climb up the program record book. Goar recently took sole possession of eighth place in career kills (1,131) and ranks 14th all-time in digs (1,150). She is one of just seven players in program history with at least 1,100 in both categories. Goar needs just three more kills to move into seventh place on the career list.
Goar has recorded a double-double in digs/kills in each of the last three matches. Sophomore Bre Maloney leads the team with eight double-doubles (assists/digs). She recorded a career-best 23 digs against Wayne State as the Warriors posted a season-high 98 digs in a four-set match. Becca Pagel leads the team with 222 digs and ranks 12th in the NSIC in digs/set (4.04).
Defense at the net has also contributed to the Warriors' recent success as WSU totaled double digit blocks in each of the last two matches, including a season-high 13 against Wayne. Senior Sophie Wilker has a team-high 61 blocks and ranks fourth in the NSIC in blocks/set (1.13). Freshman Madison Rizner ranks second on the team with 51, and recorded a career-best eight blocks vs. Wayne. Her 86 kills rank fourth on the team behind Megan Flom (170), Cori Meyers (118) and Paige Christopher (91).
Overall, Winona State ranks second in the conference in blocks/set (2.25) and is seventh in digs/set (16.14).
Scouting Minot State
The Warriors will look to leapfrog the Beavers (9-7, 3-4 NSIC) in the conference standings on Friday night. Minot enters the match on a three-match winning streak after recent victories over Dickinson State, Crookston and Bemidji. The Beavers are just 1-3 at home this season.
Minot's nine wins are the program's most since 2014 (11-18) after the Beavers posted just 13 combined wins over the past three years. The Beavers' last win over Winona State came during that 2014 campaign.
Despite the relatively strong start to their season, the Beavers rank near the bottom of the NSIC in hitting percentage (.168), kills/set (11.78), blocks (1.32) and digs (14.60).
Hayley Swain leads Minot in hitting percentage (.338), while Shelby Spuller has a team-best 3.85 kill/set which rank sixth in the NSIC. Karli Koza ranks fifth in the league in digs/set (4.82).
Scouting UMary
The Marauders (3-12, 0-7 NSIC) host Upper Iowa on Friday before welcoming the Warriors to town on Saturday morning. Mary began the season 3-1 and has since dropped 11 straight matches. Winona State has won 14 straight meetings with Mary dating back to the Marauders last win over WSU in 2007.
The Marauders rank last or second-to-last in the conference in hitting percentage (.119), kills/set (10.48), blocks/set (1.31) and digs/set (13.60). Mary has hit below .100 as a team in three consecutive matches and six total times this season.
Sydney Murphy's 19 service aces this year rank 13th in the NSIC. Morgan Schnabel leads the team with 2.87 kills/set. Julianna Hughes owns a team-best .208 attacking percentage.
