WINONA, Minn. – No. 20 Winona State University hosts No. 5 Concordia, St. Paul inside McCown Gymnasium on Tuesday evening in the Warriors' fourth matchup against a Top 25 opponent in their last five contests. First serve is scheduled for 6 p.m.
Tuesday's contest also marks the end of the Warriors' three-match homestand and begins a stretch of three total matches this week. Winona State has five home dates remaining on its regular season schedule.
Free McDonald's and t-shirts will be available to students during the match.
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SCOUTING CSP: The Golden Beats (13-3, 7-1 NSIC) are currently tied atop the loaded conference standings with Minnesota Duluth and Northern State. CSP has won five straight, including wins over three nationally-ranked NSIC foes. The Golden Bears rank 10th nationally in kills/set (14.31) and 28th in team hitting percentage (.249). Defensively, CSP limits opponents to a .187 clip, and ranks seventh in the NSIC in blocks/set (1.95) and eighth in digs/set (15.44). Sara Macek is sixth in the league with a .383 attacking percentage which ranks 27th in the country. Jasmine Mulvihill ranks ninth in the NSIC in kills/set (3.69). Tori Hanson is fifth in the conference in digs/set (4.56) and Kennedy Brady ranks seventh in blocks/set (1.00).
SPOOKY SZN: Since the calendar has turned to October, junior Megan Flom has been a monster for WSU. After being named the NCAA DII National Player of the Week, Flom continued to excel last weekend. She recorded a .468 attacking percentage over two matches with 43 kills, six blocks, three digs and two service aces. In the Warriors' 3-1 win over Augustana, Flom matched her career high with 25 kills and tallied a career-best .564 hitting percentage. She leads the team in kills (181) and ranks eighth in the NSIC in kills/set (3.69). Flom's .369 attacking percentage ranks 32nd in the country.
TURN THE PAIGE: Another bright spot in Winona State's triumph against Augie was sophomore Paige Christopher. The outside hitter floored a career-best 19 kills while also recording a career-high .469 attacking percentage. Christopher added five digs and a pair of blocks in the win. She currently ranks third on the team in kills/set (2.50).
FOUNTAIN OF YOUTH: Along with Christopher, Winona State's success this season has featured two more underclassmen in Madison Larson and Madison Rizner. Larson, a true freshman, ranks second on the team in kills (148) and kills/set (2.85). Rizner, a sophomore, leads the team in total blocks (65), ranks third in the NSIC in blocks/set (1.08) and is third on the team in total kills (127). Rizner has recorded a hitting percentage of .400 or better four times this season and totaled five or more blocks six times.
DIG, SET, WIN: In Saturday's win against Augustana, the Warriors recorded a season-best 86 digs while Bre Maloney totaled a career-best 58 set assists. Maloney currently ranks sixth in the NSIC in assists/set (10.37) which is 31st in the country. Maloney has set the Warriors to a .251 attacking percentage this season which is sixth in the league and 26th nationally. Junior libero Becca Pagel continues to lead the defensive back row with 4.35 digs/set which are seventh-most in the conference. As a team, Winona State ranks ninth in the league in digs/set (15.40).
BEST OF THE BEST: In the loaded NSIC volleyball schedule, there are essentially no days off for the Warriors who must battle the best teams in Division II week in and week out. This week's AVCA Top 25 Poll features 10 of the NSIC's 16 schools either ranked or receiving votes. Two of those teams will miss the NSIC Tournament as only the top eight qualify for the postseason, making each contest seemingly a must-win. Winona State also has No. 6 Northern State on its schedule this weekend.
