The University of Minnesota Crookston Volleyball team enters the back-half of their schedule with two matches against Minnesota State University, Moorhead and Northern State. The Golden Eagles have just six home matches left on the season, including this weekend with the Dragons and Wolves. The Golden Eagles will have their annual Cancer Awareness weekend as well, where the Minnesota Crookston Student Athlete Advisory Committee will have a free-will donation for Alex Gullingsrud, a Red Lake Falls, Minn., native who was recently diagnosed with cancer. All proceeds will go to the family.

• MARA THE MAGNIFICENT. Sophomore Mara Weisensel had a really nice weekend for the Golden Eagles. On Friday night against Minnesota State, the New Ulm, Minn., native collected five kills on 16 total attacks and then followed up that performance with eight kills on 18 total attacks against No. 4 Concordia-St. Paul. Weisensel has a bright future as a Golden Eagle and her recent play has shown why.

• BAILEY FROM BRANDON. Another Golden Eagle who has a really bright future as a Golden Eagle is freshman Bailey Schaefer. The first-year attacker from Brandon, Minn., has done it attacking for the maroon and gold, collecting 78 kills on the season and 6 service aces, but she has been solid defensively as well, collecting 88 digs on the season, which is third on the Golden Eagles. Schaefer does not have a double-double on the season, but collected 13 digs in a sweep over Minot State earlier this year. No. 13 has been a bright spot for the Golden Eagles this year.

• SHE'S TOO IMPORTANT. Lauren Wallace has proven to be very valuable in her five seasons at Minnesota Crookston. This season, she has proven to be way too valuable for the Golden Eagles to even take her off the floor. Wallace plays every rotation and has not seen the bench yet this season. The redshirt senior from Bloomington, Minn., has played in every set and has started in every match.

• THAT COULD USE A CHANGE. Northern State has undoubtedly had the upper hand in the series with the Golden Eagles. NSU leads the all-time series 29-4 and has won 18 matches in a row against the Golden Eagles. Minnesota Crookston's last win came in 2008 over the Wolves. Golden Eagle fans would like to see that winning streak come to an end this weekend inside Lysaker Gymnasium.

• HOME COOKING. Minnesota Crookston has two wins over MSUM since 2015, both of which have come in Crookston. The Golden Eagles beat the Dragons in four sets in 2015 and then followed that up with a win in four sets as well in 2017. We will see if Golden Eagle volleyball can follow the lead of Golden Eagle soccer and defeat the Dragons this fall for the first time in a long time.

• LAYNE THE LIBERO. Layne Whaley took over libero duties earlier this season and to say she has run with it would be a massive understatement. It seems like the Golden Eagles have their future at the libero position. The Ashland, Neb., native is second on the team with 93 digs and is second on the team with 10 service aces. Whaley has been really good since putting on the different colored jersey and she will look to continue that this weekend.


Minnesota Crookston Golden Eagles
Head Coach: Sarah Morgan (5th Season)
Record at UMC: 16-81

Minnesota State University, Moorhead
Head Coach: Bob Jones (1st Season)
Record at MSUM: 1-16

Northern State Wolves
Head Coach: Brent Aldridge (11th Season)
Record at NSU: 198-84

How to Follow
MSUM @ Minnesota Crookston
Date: Friday, Oct. 15
Time: 6 P.M.
Gary Senske Court at Lysaker Gymnasium
Cancer Awareness Weekend
Officials: Sara Bowman and Melissa Gordon
NSIC Match
Video: https://nsicnetwork.com/goldeneaglesports/
Live Stats: https://goldeneaglesports.com/sidearmstats/wvball/media

Northern State @ Minnesota Crookston
Date: Saturday, Oct. 16
Time: 2 P.M.
Gary Senske Court at Lysaker Gymnasium
Cancer Awareness Weekend
Officials: Melissa Gordon and Sara Bowman
NSIC Match
Video: https://nsicnetwork.com/goldeneaglesports/
Live Stats: https://goldeneaglesports.com/sidearmstats/wvball/media


Opponents Outlook
MINNESOTA STATE UNIVERSITY, MOORHEAD. The Dragons and Golden Eagles sit side-by-side in the NSIC standings heading into this weekend. Both of these teams have one win on the season, which coincidentally came against the same team: Minot State. This Friday night, the Dragons will look for their second NSIC win, while the Golden Eagles will look for their first NSIC win of the season.

SUNNY WITH A CHANCE. Back-to-back weekend's with Disney Channel references? Yeah, not even mad about that. Amanda Carlson, a junior from gorgeous Phoenix, Ariz., and alum of Sunnyslope High School is the Dragons go-to player offensively. Carlson has 190 kills on the season, including a 24 kill performance earlier this season against Black Hills State. The junior has eight matches with double-digit kills this season, with 17 kills against Sioux Falls just last weekend.

TWO IS BETTER THAN ONE. One thing about the Dragons that is different from other Golden Eagle opponents is that they have two legit setters that can play. Freshman Halle Erickson leads the team with 198 assists, while Kelly Klees has 173 on the season. Both Erickson and Klees are freshman and have each played in 15 matches. Erickson has played in 47 sets, while Klees has played in 39. Expect a heavy dose of both players this weekend in Crookston.

NORTHERN STATE. The Wolves have lost two matches in a row to No. 5 Wayne State College and Augustana. Before this last weekend, the Wolves were constantly receiving votes for the AVCA Coaches Poll. That respect has been in large part to their wins over Rockhurst University (Mis.), Winona State and Southwest Minnesota State. All three opponents are ranked nationally. With matches at Bemidji State and Minnesota Crookston this weekend, it seems like a decent weekend for the Wolves to right the ship.

FRESHMAN STANDOUT. Freshman Natalie Szybinska has been an unbelievable find for the Wolves this season. The Poznan, Poland native has been an immediate star for NSU. Szybinska has two matches with 20 kills this season, both of which have been wins. The freshman has 13 games of double-digit kills and is coming off a 19 kill performance in her last match against the Vikings of Augustana University. Szybinska is going to be a force in the NSIC for years to come.

HOLY HAVYN.  Havyn Heinz has been sensational defensively for the Wolves this season. The Huron, S.D., native is averaging 4.16 digs per set this season and has 254 digs on the season. The sophomore has had matches with 27, 22, 21 (2x) and 19 digs this season. Opponents are advised to hit it away from number 3.