Women's Volleyball | 10/16/2024 1:07:00 PM

#TIDBITS

Golden Eagle volleyball will be back on the road on Thursday of this week, before being back at home on Saturday, with a rare day break in NSIC action. The Golden Eagles will head to Bemidji State to take on their Highway-2 rivals on Thursday and will return home on Saturday to take on another Highway-2 opponent, Minnesota Duluth. Minnesota Crookston will take on a Bemidji State team also looking for their first win of the conference season and the Bulldogs, who are looking to right the ship with a 2-6 record in NSIC play on Saturday.

·   WE MEET AGAIN. Minnesota Crookston and Bemidji State play matches that will make their respective fan base chew some finger nails. In their last six matches between the two, each program has won three matches and in all but one of those matches, the match has gone more than the mandatory three sets. In that stretch dating back to 2019, there have been two five set matches, with the Golden Eagles winning one and the Beavers winning one, as well. We don't know what the final outcome will be on Saturday, but expect a tight match throughout.

• RINSE AND REPEAT. The Golden Eagles and Beavers met just once last season, a four-set win for BSU in Crookston last October. In that match, now sophomores Maya Jones and Madison Carsten were terrific, combining for 29 kills on just 58 attacks. The duo helped the Golden Eagles to hit .311 as a team in that match, their highest of the season. This October, Jones and Carsten will look for that same success against the Beavers. If they get it, they should feel good about getting their first win in NSIC play this season.

·  JUST MAGNIFICENT. No matter the opponent, sophomore middle Emma Malek has shown up and made an impact on a nightly basis. It has been all season, but she has been especially fantastic as of late. Malek has 22 kills in her last three matches and has hit over .230 in all three of those matches and has just seven errors on 51 total attacks. Malek also has five blocks in those three matches. She has proven to be a consistent performer all year long, as is evident with her career-high 13 kills earlier this year against Eastern New Mexico. The Golden Eagles will look to Malek the Magnificent to continue her strong play this weekend.

·   GOOD START FOR THE FRESHMAN.  Baily Teveldal has come in and has taken the reins of the setter position for the Golden Eagles. The freshman from Baltic, S.D., has been outstanding from her first game against California State East Bay to the last time out against her home state school, the University of Sioux Falls. Teveldal and her 438 assists rank top-10 conference wide and 101st out of 297 ranked nationally. She ranks 79th nationally in assists per set, with just over eight assists per set. If her start is any indication, the Golden Eagles have a future impact player for years to come at one of the most important positions in volleyball.

·    WOW, WAAS! Speaking of making an impact since she stood foot on campus, that can be true and then some for sophomore Kailee Waasdorp. The sophomore from West Fargo gives the Golden Eagles a calming presence in the back row and has been as good as she was as a freshman. Waasdorp has more than 10 digs in 11 straight matches and has a match with 34 digs in that stretch. In that stretch, she is averaging 19.2 digs per set, with her lowest coming at home against Wayne State College. Minnesota Crookston has been good in the back all season low and No. 6 is a big reason why.

·   WHY NOT WADENA? The Golden Eagles have a bevy of sophomores that have played a ton since they put on the Golden Eagle jersey. No one has played more than Madison Carsten. Carsten has started in all but two of a possible 40 matches in her career and has played in every match. As reliable as she has been to stay on the floor, the Wadena, Minn., native has made an impact. Carsten leads her team in total attacks and service aces and is second in kills and kills per set.

• IMPRESSIVE. The streak at the service line for the Golden Eagles has reached an impressive number. Considering the opponents that the Golden Eagles play and the great receiving teams they match up with, 31 straight matches with a service ace is an impressive number and the Golden Eagles will look to continue that this weekend against the Beavers and Bulldogs.

·   LITTLE STRUGGLES ON THE ROAD. In the all-time series between the two programs, Minnesota Crookston has done a good job of heading into Bemidji and coming back with a win in the left-handed column. In their 16 matches in Bemidji, the Golden Eagles have won seven and lost nine, including winning three of the last four played in Bemidji. The Golden Eagles will look to continue their success that they have had as of late in Bemidji.


Team Information
2024 Record: 3-11


How to Follow

Minnesota Crookston @ Bemidji State
Thursday, Oct. 17
6 P.M.
Bemidji, Minn. / BSU Gymnasium
Live Stats -- https://bsubeavers.com/sidearmstats/wvball/summary
Watch Live -- https://nsicnetwork.com/bsubeavers/


Minnesota Duluth @ Minnesota Crookston
Saturday, Oct. 19
2 P.M.
Crookston, Minn. / Lysaker Gymnasium
Live Stats -- https://goldeneaglesports.com/sidearmstats/wvball/summary
Watch Live -- https://nsicnetwork.com/goldeneaglesports/


#OPPONENTOUTLOOK

BEMIDJI STATE. The Beavers come into the midweek match against the Golden Eagles, looking for their first win in conference play. BSU has had some tough luck in NSIC play, losing a pair of tight five-set matches to Minnesota Duluth and Augustana. The Beavers will look to knock off the Golden Eagles this Thursday.

CLOSE COMPARISON. In what could be a tight match on Thursday, one thing to keep an eye on is attacking percentage. The Beavers have a team attacking percentage of .167, while the Golden Eagles are close behind them with a .160 attacking percentage on the season. In last year's meeting, the Golden Eagles outhit BSU in terms of attacking percentage, but still lost in four sets. Something will have to give.

C(ROW)L THE BOAT. The Beavers aren't as balanced as their opponent on Thursday, Minnesota Crookston, but they still have two really good attackers who will give opponents fits. Rylie Bjerklie and Ashley Crowl have been an outstanding duo this season, but especially Crowl, who leads the Beavers in kills with 163 and total attacks with 567, more than 200 total attacks than the next Beaver. Last season against the maroon and gold, Crowl finished with just eight kills on 20 total swings.

BATTLE OF THE SETTERS. The match this Thursday will feature two outstanding setters, in two different times in their career. The Golden Eagles have Baily Teveldal, a freshman, while the Beavers have a good one in their own right in senior Emily Wade. The Bemidji native has put up eerily similar numbers to Teveldal. She has 450 assists on the season and over eight assists per set. Wade does have seven double-doubles on the season. Wade finished with 51 assists the last time these two teams met a year ago, one of three 50 assists matches for Wade a season ago.

MINNESOTA DULUTH. The Bulldogs were a team that had NCAA Tournament aspirations, but have struggled to a 2-6 record in conference play and 9-7 record overall. UMD is one of the best programs in the Northern Sun and will look to turn their conference season around in Crookston on Saturday. Their Saturday match at Minnesota Crookston is the first visit to Crookston for UMD since 2021.

STRONG IN CONFERENCE. Although the Bulldogs have six losses in the Northern Sun, Cianna Selbitschka has been outstanding in NSIC play. The North Branch, Minn., native has 93 kills in eight NSIC matches, including a season-high 20 against Concordia-St. Paul earlier this year. The graduate student also has eight double-doubles on the season.

ACE FOR AVA. Ava Jones seems to have a knack for ending a rally just as quick as it starts. The freshman from Detroit Lakes, Minn., is fourth in the NSIC in service aces with 26 and has a service ace in 12 matches this season, including a whopping six in her first career match against Missouri Southern State. The Golden Eagles will have to be aware when No. 9 steps up to the service line.

BLOCKED BY BROTEN. Junior Kylie Broten might be from Luck, Wis., but there is no luck whatsoever in her game. Broten leads the Bulldogs with 58 blocks on the season and has seven matches this season with more than five blocks. Broten is also one of five 'Dogs with more than 100 kills on the season.