WINONA, Minn. - The Winona State University volleyball team, currently the 8th ranked in the country, is set to host the University of Sioux Falls in a Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) contest on Saturday, Oct. 16 to wrap up a week seven weekend. The match against the Cougars will start at 4pm in McCown Gymnasium, home of WNB Financial Court.
In facing USF, the Warriors will see one of the top attacking players in the country in Averey Yaksich. Yaksich is sixth nationally in kills per set at 4.40 and a total kills mark of 277, the third best mark in the NCAA Division volleyball. The Cougars are 11-7 overall and sport a 6-4 NSIC record. Sioux Falls has won four straight matches, a winning streak that started with a 3-1 win over (RV) Northern State. Winona State defeated USF 3-0 on Oct. 4, 2019, the last time the two teams competed over two years ago.
On Friday, #8 Winona State outlasted the #10 Southwest Minnesota State Mustangs in a five-set thriller, winning 3-2 (25-20, 25-19, 22 - 25, 18-25, 15-10). For Winona State, the win marked the third time in four tries the Warriors have knocked off a nationally ranked opponent. WSU defeated #4 Concordia - St. Paul, #23 Minnesota Duluth and the Mustangs, while narrowly falling to #16 St. Cloud State.
The Warriors were paced by
Bre Maloney, who earned a double-double with 10 digs and 48 helpers on the evening.
Madison Larson led Winona State with 14 kills, while
Megan Flom was also dominant, registering 13 kills and a hitting percentage of .379.
Becca Pagel was key in defense for Winona State, racking up 20 digs.
Casey Volkmann was on her game defensively as well, collecting nine digs and also serving two aces.
Heading into today's match against Sioux Falls, the Warriors now own a 17-2 record overall and are 8-2 within the NSIC.
For the most up to date news in Warrior Athletics, please visit:
www.WINONASTATEWARRIORS.com and
@WinonaStateATH.
About Winona State University Athletics:
The Winona State University Department of Intercollegiate Athletics, as an integral part of the educational mission of the institution, is committed to offering opportunities to experience academic and athletic excellence for our student-athletes through two simple words:
Graduate Champions.
Fourteen Warrior programs compete at the NCAA Division II level within the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC). Winona State University competes as an affiliate member of the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) in the sport of women's gymnastics.
