The University of Minnesota Crookston Volleyball team heads on the road for a pair of matches this weekend as they travel to Minnesota State and Concordia-St. Paul. The Mavericks have lost four out of their past five matches, while No. 4 Concordia-St. Paul looks to be yet another contender for their 10th National Championship in school history. The Golden Bears sit alone at the top of the NSIC standings and have won seven out of their last eight matches. Their only three losses are at the hands of No. 2 MSU Denver, No. 3 CSU Pueblo and No. 9 Winona State.

• GOOD LUCK CHARLEE. Of course, that is the reference to the old Disney Channel show, 'Good Luck, Charlie'. Minnesota Crookston's Charlee Krieg is having a solid second season as a Golden Eagle. The sophomore from Cavalier, N.D., is third on the team in points per set at 2.20 and has 59 kills on the season, including seven in the sweep of Minot State in early September. Krieg looks to be a big part of the Golden Eagles future for years to come.

• SHE ACTUALLY CAN DO IT ALL. Natalie Koke has had a solid season as the main setter on the roster for the Golden Eagles. The redshirt junior from Caledonia, Wis., has had double-digit assists in every game this season and has played in every match and set this season. Koke also has 12 service aces from the service line and leads the team with a .202 attacking percentage, collecting 29 kills on 99 total attacks. Koke has been solid as the main setter this season and she will look to continue that solid play this weekend against the Mavericks and Golden Bears.

• THAT'S A USELESS STAT. This is really a stat that probably no one cares about, but I still think that it is interesting. This season, the Golden Eagles will have played 20 Universities that have a mascot that is an animal. Including this weekend's matches at Minnesota State (Mavericks) and Concordia-St. Paul (Golden Bears), the Golden Eagles will have already played 11 matches against animal namesakes. With the Golden Eagles schedule this year, it's pretty obvious that animals are the most common nicknames all across America.

• EXCITEMENT IN CROOKSTON. It has been five years since the Golden Eagles have beaten Minnesota State, with its last win coming in 2016. That five-set win over the Mavericks was full of excitement and then some. That match saw neither team win a set by more than three points, except the fifth set when the Golden Eagles defeated the Mavericks 15-9.  We will see if the Golden Eagles can carry over some of that magic this weekend in the Taylor Center.

• THAT'S A KEY NUMBER. One of the most important numbers in all of volleyball is attacking percentage. It's a lot like field goal percentage in basketball, shots on goal in hockey or batting average in baseball. If a team leads the way in any of those categories, odds are, that team will come out on top. The Golden Eagles have had an attacking percentage of over .200 just once earlier this season in a loss to Fort Hays State. Minnesota Crookston has hit in the negatives twice this season as well. The Golden Eagles will look to reverse that trend and attack better this weekend against MSU and CSP.

• GRACE WILL SET THE PACE. Grace Arndorfer has seemed to earn the trust of her teammates, especially last weekend. The freshman from Lino Lakes, Minn., has played nine sets on the season, including three earlier this season against Rollins College and two this past weekend against Upper Iowa. Although the numbers haven't been gaudy, Arndorfer has played well in her time and she will look to gain even more momentum in her play this weekend against a pair of NSIC South opponents.


Minnesota Crookston Golden Eagles
Head Coach: Sarah Morgan (5th Season)
Record at UMC: 15-79

Minnesota State Mavericks
Head Coach: Corey Phelps (1st Season)
Record at MSU: 8-7

Concordia-St. Paul Golden Bears
Head Coach: Brady Starkey (19th Season)
Record at CSP: 563-69

How to Follow
Minnesota Crookston @ Minnesota State
Date: Friday, Oct. 8
Time: 6 P.M.
Taylor Center
NSIC Match
Video: https://nsicnetwork.com/msumavericks/
Live Stats: https://msumavericks.com/sidearmstats/wvball/summary

Minnesota Crookston @ No. 4 Concordia-St. Paul
Date: Saturday, Oct. 9
Time: 5 P.M.
Gangelhoff Center
NSIC Match
Video: https://nsicnetwork.com/cspbears/
Live Stats: https://cspbears.com/sidearmstats/wvball/summary


Opponents Outlook
MINNESOTA STATE MANKATO. This weekend, the Golden Eagles will play in the biggest arena they have played in this season: The Taylor Center, home of the Mavericks, named after Timberwolves' owner Glen Taylor and a place that seats 4,800 people. Minnesota State will look to get back to their winning ways this weekend with a pair of matches against Minnesota Crookston and Bemidji State.

BLOCK BY BLOCK. The Mavericks are one of the best teams in the NSIC when it comes to an important stat. As a team, the Mavericks are fourth in the NSIC with 135.0 blocks on the season, which averages out to almost 2.50 blocks per set. Freshman Kiya Durant and sophomore Ellie Danielson are the main reason behind the Mavericks' success at the net. The youngsters have combined for 112.0 blocks on the season, which ranks third among all duos in the NSIC this season.

MARIAH PROVIDES AN EDGE. When Mariah Edgerton is playing well, the Mavericks seem to be playing well as well. Edgerton has indeed been playing good volleyball recently. In her last six matches, the Spring Grove, Minn., native has missed the double-digit kill mark just once in a loss to Minnesota Duluth. Edgerton also has a 22 kill performance earlier this season in a five-set match against Quincy University.

CONCORDIA-ST. PAUL. It may sound like a broken record, but the Golden Bears are once again National Championship contenders. The No. 4 Golden Bears come into this weekend with a 13-3 record. Those three losses have come against nationally ranked opponents: No. 2 MSU Denver, No. 3 Angelo State and No. 9 Winona State, who might be one of the hottest teams in the entire nation.

CREAM OF THE CROP. Not only is Jasmine Mulvihill one of the best players in the NSIC, but she also has an argument for one of the best in the entire nation. Mulvihill ranks in the top 40 in the nation in three categories: kills per set, total kills and points per set. She ranks in the top-ten in the NSIC in those categories plus attacks per set and total attacks. Stopping Mulvihill will be a monumental task for any opponent this year when playing CSP.

TAUGHT IN DELANO. Delano High School has a rich history of good volleyball and that has helped build Tori Hanson into the player she is today. The senior, who hails from Delano has made a variety of All-NSIC teams, including first-team, second-team and all-tournament team in her CSP career. Hanson ranks ninth in the conference with 218 digs, including a 26-dig performance earlier this year against MSU, Moorhead. Hanson has three straight matches with 20 or more digs.