The University of Minnesota Crookston Volleyball team is back in action at home this weekend for a pair of matches with No. 11 Winona State and Upper Iowa. Both teams are coming off a great weekend, sweeping Minot State and UMary. WSU has a four-match winning streak, while Upper Iowa has won two matches in a row. It will be a good test this weekend for the Golden Eagles, who will look to end a five-match losing streak in front of their home crowd at Lysaker Gymnasium.

• CONSISTENCY. Currently, the Golden Eagles have three players that have played in every set this season: Redshirt senior Lauren Wallace, redshirt junior Natalie Koke and sophomore Mara Weisensel. They have been able to produce consistently this season for Head Coach Sarah Morgan and she will rely on the trio as the year goes on this season. Freshmen Bailey Schaefer and Layne Whaley have proven to be reliable as well, playing in 32 of the possible 33 sets this season.

• FUTURE IS THERE. There is no denying that the Golden Eagles have a young roster this season, featuring just three seniors. In fact, one could argue that the Golden Eagles might have the youngest roster in the NSIC. Young players are having a chance to play and step up. That has been the case with sophomores Weisensel and Charlee Krieg and freshman Bailey Schaefer. The trio each have over two points per set this season, with Weisensel leading the dynamic trio with 2.29 points per set, which is also second on the team. The underclassmen have combined for 164 kills this season as well. With Weisensel, Krieg and Schaefer having years left as Golden Eagles, the future could be bright for the Golden Eagles.

• ATTACK OF THE NAT. Natalie Koke has had a nice first season as the full-time setter for the Golden Eagles. The redshirt junior from Caledonia, Wis., leads her team with 216 assists (6.55 per set) as well as in service aces with 11. It's almost like that isn't enough, because she also has 25 kills from the setter position, which is a really good number. Koke has taken the setter position and has run with it.

• WHEN IN DOUBT, GO TO LO. Lauren Wallace knows what it takes to be a Golden Eagle. The fifth year senior has been a lock in the rotation since 2018 and that has continued this season. Wallace surpassed the 300 career kills in last Friday's three-set loss to Wayne State College. With 82 kills this season, Wallace looks well on her way to surmounting her previous career-high of 128 kills in a season set back in 2019. The lefty from Bloomington, Minn., continues to impress in her final season as a Golden Eagle.

• A DECADE TOO LONG. The last time the Golden Eagles knocked off a ranked opponent (2011), was also the last time that the Golden Eagles defeated Winona State. The Golden Eagles knocked off WSU in a sweep in Crookston two days before Halloween in 2011. Do the Golden Eagles have some magic up their sleeves this weekend inside Lysaker Gymnasium?

• LEAD THE WHAY LAYNE. Layne Whaley has seemed to take over the Libero position for the Golden Eagles and run away with it. The freshman is currently third on the Golden Eagles with 119 digs on the season and is tied for second with eight service aces. Over the weekend, Whaley dug out nine balls in two matches and had a service ace against Augustana. The Ashland, Neb., native seems to have a bright four years ahead of her in the maroon and gold.


Minnesota Crookston Golden Eagles
Head Coach: Sarah Morgan
Record at UMC: 15-77

No. 11 Winona State University Warriors
Head Coach: Joe Getzin (8th Season)
Record at WSU: 125-55

Upper Iowa University Peacocks
Head Coach: Aaron Nelson (11th Season)
Record at UIU: 148-130

How to Follow
Winona State @ Minnesota Crookston
Date: Friday, Oct. 1
Time: 6 P.M.
Gary Senske Court inside Lysaker Gymnasium
Parent's Weekend
NSIC Match
Video: https://nsicnetwork.com/goldeneaglesports/
Live Stats: https://goldeneaglesports.com/sidearmstats/wvball/media

Upper Iowa @ Minnesota Crookston
Date: Saturday, Oct. 2
Time: 2 P.M.
Gary Senske Court inside Lysaker Gymnasium
Parent's Weekend
NSIC Match
Video: https://nsicnetwork.com/goldeneaglesports/
Live Stats: https://goldeneaglesports.com/sidearmstats/wvball/media


Opponents Outlook
WINONA STATE WARRIORS. Another Friday night, another ranked opponent upcoming for the Golden Eagles. The Warriors are one of the best teams in the nation, winning 12 of their first 13 matches. Their only blemish came at the hands of Northern State in three sets in Winona, Minn.The Warriors have won four matches in a row and will look to continue that this weekend at Minnesota Crookston and Bemidji State.

CREAM OF THE CROP. Being 12-1 on the season, it only makes sense that the Warriors as a team sit in the top-five in a number of categories in the NSIC. WSU leads the NSIC in a whopping eight categories including: Hitting Percentage, opponent hitting percentage, assists, opponent assists, kills, opponent kills, opponent service aces and digs. The Warriors seemingly have one of the best teams in the conference and that is evident with where they rank. The proof is in the pudding.

FLOM FROM PROGRESSIVE. Graduate student Megan Flom is really, really good. In fact, that might be putting it lightly. Flom, the native of Kenyon, Minn., has achieved double-digit kills in every match but two this season for the Warriors and is averaging a staggering 16.2 kills in her last six matches. Flom leads the NSIC in atacking percentage (.461) and points (210) and is also second in kills per set at 4.26. Flom is a legit NSIC Player of the Year candidate and it helps when you have a setter in Bre Maloney, who leads the conference with almost 12 assists per set.

UPPER IOWA PEACOCKS. The Peacocks look to be among the middle of the pack this season in the NSIC. UIU started out the season at 8-2, but lost back-to-back matches to No. 4 Concordia-St. Paul and Northern State. The Peacocks got back on track with a trip to North Dakota last weekend, where they swept both UMary and Minot State.

CLARK GRISWOLD WOULD BE PROUD. In the 'National Lampoon's' movie series, Clark Griswold and his family traveled everywhere, logging miles all across the world. This season, the Peacocks would be making Chevy Chase proud. Just in the last two weekend's, Upper Iowa would've traveled a whopping 2,400 miles, including their trip to Crookston and Bemidji. If the Peacocks can go 4-0 in their longest road trip of the season, it should make the number of miles absolutely worth it.

FOUR OF A KIND. The thing that makes the Peacocks so good is the fact that they have four attackers they can go to to get them a point. Madelyn Rettler, Maggie Streightiff, Zoe Semelroth and Kaitlin Niedert each have over 125 kills on the season, with Rettler leading the way with 149. Those four make UIU scary and have a legit chance to each get over 200 kills on the season.