BISMARCK, ND –The University of Mary volleyball team (3-17, 0-11 Northern Sun) heads back home to host Bemidji State University (0-19, 0-11 NSIC) on Friday, October 22, at 6 pm. UMary then returns on Saturday, October 23, to the McDowell Activity Center to compete against the University of Minnesota Crookston (1-15, 0-11 NSIC) at 2 pm.

Game Sponsors
Railway Credit Union will be sponsoring the game against Bemidji State University on Friday at 6 pm. Scheels will host Saturday's game against the University of Minnesota Crookston at 2 pm. Tickets are available at each location.

Cancer Awareness Weekend
The University of Mary volleyball team will be hosting cancer awareness weekend for both games.

Ticket Information
Adult tickets are $10 while senior citizen and youth tickets (13-18 years old) are $5. UMary students and faculty with their MCard and youth 12 and younger are admitted free.

Follow Live
Fans unable to attend the event are encouraged to watch all UMary home games live online and free of charge at www.goumary.com/coverage.

Last Time Out
The Marauders are coming off defeats to #14 St. Cloud State University and the University of Minnesota Duluth.

UMary was able to take a set off SCSU. The Marauders showed great resilience as they would win the third set 25-19. UMary finished the set by winning the last three points, including a kill by Maddie Cooper assisted by Kameron Selvig.

About The Opposition 
Bemidji State University sits in a tie for 13^th in the NSIC. Freshman Anna Averkamp leads BSU in kills with 160. Leading the team in assists with 461 is freshman Emily Wade. The Beavers leader in digs is sophomore Madison Weyker. Sophomore Rylie Bjerklie leads BSU in the in blocks with 32.

The University of Minnesota Crookston also is tied for 13^th in the NSIC. Senior Lauren Wallace is the team leader in kills with 104 and digs with 110. Junior Natalie Koke leads UMC in assists with 325. The Golden Eagles leader in blocks is sophomore Mara Weisensel, who has 25.

Stats To Watch

• Nehkyah Ellis is first on the team in kills with 126. She is second on the team with 197 digs and has 17 aces. Ellis is 17^th in the NSIC in digs per set with 3.03.
• Kennedy Drewis is third on the team with 115 kills and is third on the team with 22 blocks.
• Natalia Cruz is second on the team in kills with 120. She also has 145 digs and 16 blocks.
• Kaia Sueker is the team leader in digs with 275. Sueker is 10^th in the NSIC in digs per set with 3.93.
• Kameron Selvig leads the Marauders in assists with 329 and is second on the team with 17 aces.
• Bailey Harms leads the Marauders in blocks with 36 and has 73 kills.
• Emily Torborg is second on the team with 34 blocks while earning 15 aces.

Coaches
Former assistant coach Abby Pollart is returning to the University of Mary as the new Marauders head volleyball coach. Pollart spent the last two seasons as the head coach of the Central Community College (CCC) Raiders in Columbus, NE, from 2019-21. Pollart joined the Marauders as an assistant coach for a season in 2018-19 where she served as recruiting coordinator, oversaw academics, and assisted in fundraising, among other tasks.

Pollart named Bree Ackermann as her assistant coach for the 2021 season. Ackermann competed for four years at Wayne State College from 2014-2017 where she made the NSIC All-Academic Team three times. Playing as a libero/defensive specialist for the Wildcats, Ackermann appeared in 115 games. Ackermann began coaching at Scotus Central Catholic High School in Columbus, NE, where she served as the assistant volleyball coach and head junior varsity coach.

Returning Marauders
Senior Natalia Cruz returns as the Marauders 2021 Northern Sun Player to Watch. Cruz led the team in digs, digs per set, service aces and service aces per set in 2019. Cruz ranked 14th in the NSIC in digs with 3.98 per set.

Other notable returners include seniors Brittany Brusven and Bailey Harms. Bruvsen played in 12 sets in 2019 while recording 37 assists, averaging 3.08 assists per set. Harms was redshirted in 2019, but as a freshman in 2018 she played in 14 matches during her freshman campaign. She recorded 57 kills and 29 blocks. Harms averaged .66 blocks per set which were second on the team.

Junior Nehkyah Ellis returns to the Marauders after playing in 54 sets in 2019. Ellis was 2nd on the team with 1.81 kills per set, had the 2nd highest serve reception percentage of .930, and had 119 digs.

New Faces
Sophomores Laura Petik, Emily Torborg, Kameron Selvig, Reagan Celaya, Olivia Dickerson and Maddie Cooper will all compete in their first full season as a Marauder. They were able to gain valuable experience as they were able to play four games in the spring 2021 season. Cooper was second on the team with 2.33 kills per set in the spring 2021 season and Celaya was third with 2.14 kills per set.

Other new additions include junior Kennedy Drewis who transferred from Iowa Western Community College after previously attending Division I Western Illinois University. Junior Kaia Sueker competed in the Cross Country and Track teams at UMary and was a member of the 2019 NSIC Cross Country Championship Team. Both were able to compete with the Marauders in the spring 2021 season.

The Marauders bring in six new freshmen, bringing new energy and excitement to the team. The freshman includes Kayla Lewinski, Elaina Lubeck, Robi Binagi, Alexandria Harper, Emma Toerber and Chloe Lieser will look to make an impact this season.

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