BISMARCK, ND – The University of Mary volleyball team will conclude their 2022 season on the road this weekend November 4-5. The Marauders will battle #5 Minnesota Duluth (23-3, 15-3 NSIC) Friday at 6 pm, followed by a matinee meeting with #8 St. Cloud State (21-5, 12-5 NSIC) Saturday at 3 pm. This will mark the second series against Minnesota Duluth and St. Cloud State this season for the Marauders, currently sitting 12^th in the Northern Sun.
 
TIME CHANGED FOR SCSU MATCH TO 3 PM
The start time for the Marauders season finale at St. Cloud State on Saturday, November 5, was moved back an hour to 3 pm.
 
LAST TIME OUT
The Marauders (6-20, 5-13 NSIC) enter this weekend rolling on a three-game winning streak. Robi Binagi, with her 12 kills, helped lead the Marauders to a 3-1 victory over Minot State on Tuesday, October 25. UMary returned home to the McDowell Activity to close the home schedule on a weekend sweep over Minnesota Crookston and Bemidji State October 28-29. Nehkyah Ellis won NDPF Female Athlete of the Week for her efforts which included 17 kills in each of the weekend matches and striking for very impressive hitting percentages, 0.452%, and 0.349% respectively.
 
GROWTH
The Marauders have earned five wins in the Northern Sun this season. It is the most conference wins for UMary since posting eight in 2015.
 
PLAYERS TO WATCH

• Kaia Sueker looks to finish her tremendous sophomore season strong as the Marauders libero. Her 428 digs and 4.81 digs per set average are both career bests and currently rank second in the Northern Sun. Sueker has also been a proficient server for the Marauders this season, ranking second on the team with 21 aces from the service line.
• Nehkyah Ellis enters this weekend as UMary's reigning Female Athlete of the Week after her 34 total kills from October 28-29. Ellis still leads the Marauders in the attack with 229 kills, a mark that is only 10 shy of her personal season best of 239 set in 2021. She's also provided a versatile range for the Marauders with 270 digs and 20 ace serves.
• Maddie Cooper has stepped up this year as a major player in the middle for UMary. The sophomore from Fargo, ND, is second with 169 kills while leading with 65 total blocks.
• UMary has enjoyed immediate impacts from newcomers Maddy Freed, Reyna Isenbart, and McKenna Kirkpatrick this season. Freed topped 500 assists in her first season at UMary last week with big performances in each of the Marauders victories. She currently has 509 assists. Isenbart has pitched in 147 kills and is second on the team with 52 total blocks. Kirkpatrick has been another versatile player for the Marauders, putting up a team-high 24 ace serves and 39 total blocks.

THE OPPOSITION
The University of Minnesota Duluth Bulldogs enter the weekend ranked #5 in the latest AVCA DII poll with a 23-3 overall record, and 15-3 in the Northern Sun. The Marauders hosted the Bulldogs earlier this season on September 10, playing close but falling in three sets (14-25, 17-25, 19-25). Minnesota Duluth has five hitters with over 200 kills on the season. Madison Gordon paces this well-rounded attack for Duluth, dishing out 1,064 assists thus far while averaging 11.32 assists per set, the second-highest average in the Northern Sun.

The St. Cloud State Huskies enter as the #8 team in this week's AVCA DII poll with an overall record of 21-5, 12-5 in the Northern Sun. The Huskies previously defeated the Marauders at the MAC in three sets on September 9 (9-25, 12-25, 15-25). Kenzie Foley has once again proven herself to be one of the most dominant hitters in the NSIC with 355 kills averaging nearly 4 per set. Not far behind Foley is Linsey Rachel who has struck 295 kills for the second-highest total for the Huskies.

THE STAFF
Abby Pollart is in her second season as head coach of the University of Mary volleyball team. Pollart returned to UMary in 2021 after serving as an assistant coach from 2018-19. Pollart returned with head coaching experience after a successful stint at Central Community College (CCC) in Columbus, NE, from 2019-21. Pollart also has previous coaching experience with Concordia University (NE) and South Dakota School of Mines & Technology.

Also returning for her second season as an assistant coach is Bree Ackerman. Ackerman was a standout libero/defensive specialist for the Wayne State College Wildcats where she was three-time NSIC All-Academic. Jeni Walsh also returns for her third season as an assistant coach for the Marauders. Walsh also serves UMary as the Assistant Director of Athletics for Student Success and Senior Woman Administrator. Tara Callahan enters her first year as an assistant coach, previously playing collegiately under Pollart at Concordia University where Callahan was a standout setter, ranking second in career assists. Nate Nguyen also returns for another year as an assistant coach for the Marauders.
 
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