THIS WEEK

The University of Mary volleyball team heads south for their first NSIC road tests of the season. The Marauders take on Augustana University on Friday, September 27 at 6 PM in Sioux Falls, SD. They will then take on Wayne State College at 1 PM on Saturday, September 28 in Wayne, NE.

 

THE RECORD

The Marauders come into the weekend with a 1-9 record, going 0-2 in NSIC play.

 

LAST TIME OUT

The last time the Marauders took the court was for matches against #9 Southwest Minnesota State and #19 Sioux Falls. Both teams were able to take UMary down in three sets but the Marauders did not go down without a fight, showing they have the potential to hang with national powerhouses. Morgan Schnabel led the team in kills during both competitions, with Sydney Murphy leading in assists, Natalia Cruz leading in digs, and Madison Bergthold in blocks.

 

OPPO RESEARCH – AUGUSTANA

Augustana comes into the game with an 8-2 record. The only faults of the Vikings were a loss to #3 Nebraska-Kearney and #8 Northern State. Augie received votes in the most recent coaches poll, putting themselves just outside of the NCAA top 25. Augustana comes into the match with the most service aces in the NSIC. They are second in the NSIC in digs per set. Three Vikings rank in the top 20 in the NSIC in service aces and Erika Bute ranks second in the NSIC in digs per set.

 

LAST MEETING

The last time UMary and Augustana met was during the 2018 season when Augie swept the Marauders. Morgan Schnabel led the team with kills with 10 on the game, Katja Berge was right behind her with nine. The Marauders were blocking machines on the game with Bailey Harms totaling five and Katja Berge adding four.

 

OPPO RESEARCH – WAYNE STATE COLLEGE

Wayne State comes into the week against UMary with a 9-1 record. The lone loss on the season comes against #8 Northern State. The impressive start has earned the Wildcats a #17 ranking in the AVCA Coaches Poll. WSC has an impressive defense, holding opponents to a .094 hitting percentage, the lowest in the NSIC. They also hold opponents to the lowest kills/set and assists/set while leading the conference in service aces/set. Tarrin Beller leads the NSIC in hitting percentage (.480) and blocks (1.39/set). The Wildcats also have three athletes ranked in the top five for service aces per set.

 

LAST MEETING

Wayne State was able to best the Marauders in three sets during their last meeting. Morgan Schnabel led the team with nine kills. Brittany Brusven and Sydney Murphy were each able to record double digit assists during the match.

CHASING MILESTONES

Four Marauders are nearing big time career milestone.

Sydney Murphy has 942 career assists, just 58 away from the big 1,000

Morgan Schnabel has 447 career kills, just 53 away from 500.

Natalia Cruz has 545 career digs, just 55 away from 600.

Katja Berge has 280 career kills, just 20 away from 300.

 

DOUBLE-DOUBLE TROUBLE

Double-doubles have been the name of the game for the Marauders early on in the season. Setter Sydney Murphy has been a machine, recording eight double-doubles in the first eight matches of the season in assists and digs. Anna Nietfeld has four double-doubles on the season with digs and kills. Morgan Schnabel adds three double-doubles of her own with digs and kills.

 

ATTACK AND KILL

Morgan Schnabel leads the Marauders in kills with a total of 131, averaging 3.45 kills per set. Schnabel ranks tenth in the NSIC in kills/set and seventh in total kills. Anna Nietfeld is right behind her averaging 2.83 kills/set, while recording a hitting percentage of .223. Madison Bergthold has the highest hitting percentage on the team with a .234.

 

"SETTING" THE TEAM UP FOR SUCCESS

Sydney Murphy averages 8.66 assists per set, ranking her 11^th in the NSIC in assists. She has 329 total assists which puts her at ninth in total assists in the NSIC.

 

"ACE" UP THE SLEEVE

Sydney Murphy and Natalia Cruz are tied for the team lead with 11 service aces on the season. The 11 total aces ties them for 17^th in the NSIC. Right behind them with eight aces in Morgan Schnabel.

 

DIG IT UP, OH OH

Natalia Cruz leads the Marauders in digs with 126 on the season. Her 126 digs ranks her 13^th in the NSIC and her 3.32 digs/set ranks 17^th. Sydney Murphy (105) and Morgan Schnabel (94) rank second and third on the team in digs. The Marauders as a team rank sixth in the NSIC in digs with 15.16/set

NOT IN OUR HOUSE

Hannah Hanson leads to Marauders in blocks with 18. Morgan Schnabel comes in with 14 and Julianna Hughes with 10. Nine different Marauders have recorded a block on the season.

#Marauders#