WINONA, Minn. – With 10 games already in the books, (RV) Winona State University finally plays at home for the first time in the 2019 season with a weekend conference doubleheader against Bemidji State and the University of Minnesota Crookston.
First serve is slated for 6 p.m. on Friday night with Bemidji State and the weekend finale is scheduled for 2 p.m. Saturday against UMC.
The Warriors rattled off eight straight wins to begin the year before suffering a pair of losses on the road last week in its first two matchups against No. 19 St. Cloud State and No. 4 Minnesota Duluth.
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POWERHOUSE: It's no secret that the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) is the cream of the crop when it comes to Division II Volleyball. In this week's AVCA Poll, eight of the 16 NSIC schools are ranked in the Top 25 with three more, including Winona State, receiving votes in the poll. The Warriors were unranked in the preseason poll, but after their 8-0 start, Winona State has been inching its way closer to the Top 25 by receiving votes for three consecutive weeks.
SCOUTING BEMIDJI STATE: The Beavers (3-7, 0-2 NSIC) enter the weekend on a six-match skid. Bemidji State nearly snapped its losing streak in dramatic fashion last time out before falling to No. 6 Concordia, St. Paul in five sets. The Beavers rank in the bottom fourth of the league in both hitting percentage (.192) and opponent hitting percentage (.232). However, since recording a season-low .019 percentage vs. St. Cloud State, BSU has improved its attacking percentage each match and hit over .250 in both setbacks last weekend. Becky Schroeder leads the team in kills (129), kills/set (3.22) and attacking percentage (.312). WSU has won 13 straight matches against the Beavers.
SCOUTING CROOKSTON: The Golden Eagles (2-8, 0-2 NSIC) travel to Upper Iowa Friday before Saturday's finale in Winona. Crookston has also struggled to find offensive consistency this year with a .167 team attacking percentage, and the defense ranks second-to-last in the NSIC with a .238 opponent clip. The UMC offense runs through Porsha Porath who ranks eighth in the NSIC (130) and 16th in kills/set (3.25). The next highest kill total by a Golden Eagle is Lauren Wallace (54). Kaitlin Sikkink leads the team in blocks (29) and Katie Lienenmann is the leader in digs (116). WSU has dominated the all-time series and won six straight.
CAN YOU DIG IT?: Junior libero Becca Pagel entered the Warrior record book earlier this season by eclipsing the 1,000 career digs milestone in a win vs. Illinois-Springfield. A starter since her freshman season, Pagel enters the weekend with 1,099 digs which ranks just outside the Top 15 all-time. Former All-American McKenna Larsen (2014-17) ranks 15th in program history with 1,126 career digs. Pagel currently ranks 10th in the NSIC with 3.95 digs/set this year.
BLOCK PARTY: Sophomore middle Madison Rizner currently leads the league with 48 total blocks. Her 1.26 blocks/set rank fourth in the league. She has three matches this season with seven blocks – one shy of her career high. Rizner has also contributed offensively with 67 kills which rank fourth on the team. As a freshman last season, she led the Warriors in total blocks (87), solo blocks (14) and ranked fourth in kills (160).
FIRST IMPRESSION: Freshman Madison Larson has quickly made her presence felt on the court in her first season at WSU. Larson leads the team in kills (100) and ranks 14th in the NSIC in kills/set (3.33). She has recorded double digit kills three times so far this year, including a career-best 23 at St. Cloud State last weekend. Junior Megan Flom ranks second on the team in kills (78) followed by Kate Masberg (68) who floored 18 kills in a win earlier this year vs. Quincy.
GETZIN'S GOONIES: Head coach Joe Getzin entered the 2019 campaign with a record of 100-47 (67-33 NSIC) in his first five seasons at WSU. Getzin became the fastest coach in program history to reach 100 wins last year. He has led the Warriors to a .500 or better conference record in all five seasons – a feat that had not been accomplished in more than two consecutive years prior to his arrival. Getzin also helped lead WSU to its first NCAA Regional appearance in 2016.
