WINONA, Minn. - The Winona State University volleyball team - ranked No. 15 in NCAA Division II in the AVCA preseason poll - opens the 2022 season on the road but in a familiar setting, participating in the Concordia - St. Paul Invitational Tournament on Friday, August 26 and Saturday, August 27.
Winona State, a participant in the 2021 NCAA Tournament, will face four squads in the CSP Gangelhoff Center, a venue that has seen Warrior success in recent years. Last season, WSU picked up a key road win by beating Concordia - St. Paul on their home court 3-1, one of just four home losses suffered by the Bears in the last two seasons. This weekend, WSU will not see CSP but will take on Seattle Pacific, Ashland University, Drury University, and Oklahoma Baptist.
GAME & FAN INFORMATION
- Live stats and live video are available at the links above.
- All contests will take place at the Gangelhoff Center, 235 Hamline Ave., St. Paul, Minn.
- Information regarding CSP event ticketing can be found at this link.
WINONA STATE STORYLINES
- Winona State enters the season ranked No. 15 in the AVCA Preseason Poll.
- WSU advanced to the 2021 NCAA Division II Tournament, following an outstanding 28-5 season last fall.
- The Warriors graduated a large part of the team, with Bre Maloney, Megan Flom, Becca Pagel and Madison Rizner all completing their careers.
- WSU will feature seniors Casey Volkmann, Kami Knutsen, Madison Larson and Mikenna Joerger this season.
- Madison Larson was selected as WSU's Player to Watch by the NSIC.
- The Warriors were picked to finish in 8th place by the NSIC coaches, after finishing as both the regular season and tournament runner up in 2021.
- Winona State brought in four freshman and a junior college transfer in their most recent recruiting class.
- Head coach Joe Getzin heads into 2022 with a 343-319 (.518) career record, accrued over 23 seasons.
- In his ninth year at Winona State, Getzin had previous stops at Embry Riddle (AZ), Portland and Ole Miss.
- WSU added assistant coaches Jackie Kiecker and Mara Quam to the Warrior sideline, joining 3rd year assistant Kristine Fisch.
Seattle Pacific Falcons STORYLINES
- Hannah Hair was named to the All-GNAC Preseason squad for the second straight year.
- SPU was 15-10 overall last season and 11-7 in conference play.
- The Falcons were 3-2 in their final five matches of 2021.
- SPU returns five starters and lost just two starters from last season.
- Jason Rhine enters his first season as head coach at SPU.
Ashland Eagles STORYLINES
- Ashland is found in the 'Receiving Votes' category of the 2022 AVCA Preseason Poll.
- The Eagles were picked to repeat as the Great Midwest South Division champion for 2022.
- AU added six new faces to the team through their 2022 recruiting class.
- Erin Krupar leads AU, having earned D2CCA First-Team & AVCA All-American honors
- Head coach Kevin Forman is in his fifth year at Ashland University.
Drury Panthers STORYLINES
- Drury finished 20-11 last season, 10-8 in the GLVC.
- The Panthers went 4-2 in their final six matches of 2021.
- DU was selected for 6th in the GLVC, receiving one first-place vote.
- Drury was the only GLVC school outside of the top three to get first-place vote.
- Jenifer Banner-Hill enters her ninth season leading the Panthers.
- Banner-Hill ranks second in program history in career wins.
Oklahoma Baptist STORYLINES
- Oklahoma Baptist enters their 2022 regular season as the Great American Conference preseason favorite.
- OBU earned a 23-4 overall record last season and was the GAC regular-season title winner
- The Bison have won 69 of its last 79 matches.
- The top returners for the Bison are Taneyah Brown, Avery Hellmuth and Audrey Poupard.
- OBU's 2022 squad includes eight new freshmen.
- WSU beat OBU 3-0 at the Ferris State Invite in the first match for both teams of 2021.
WARRIOR NOTABLES:
- Earlier this summer, Winona State earned it's 16th consecutive AVCA Team Academic Award.
- Eleven Warriors earned NSIC All-Academic mention following last season.
- Graduated senior Megan Flom became the first WSU volleyball player to ever earn back-to-back CoSIDA Academic All-American honors, having done so in 2020 and 2021.
- Head coach Joe Getzin coached newly added assistant coach Jackie Kiecker when Kiecker was a student-athlete at Ole Miss.
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.
