Women's Volleyball | 11/4/2026 2:52:00 PM

#TIDBITS

Golden Eagle volleyball closes out the regular season this weekend with a pair of matchups with talented teams in Jamestown and Northern State. The Golden Eagles will match up with the Jimmies for the third time this season and will meet the Wolves for the second time. The Golden Eagles will celebrate senior weekend on Friday and Saturday.

·   SENIOR SEND OFF. It's always one of the most bittersweet weekends of the year; Senior weekend. This weekend, the Golden Eagles will celebrate their six seniors who have meant a ton to the program over their multiple years on campus. The Golden Eagles will celebrate Madison Carsten, Carizma Muth, Emma Malek, Penelope Vertin, Megan Schoenfelder and Kailee Waasdorp following the match on Saturday afternoon with the Wolves.

·   SPECIAL GROUP. The Golden Eagles will undoubtedly miss this senior group next year. The Golden Eagles will have to replace a ton of production with the likes of Carsten, Malek and Muth (among others) graduating. They will also have to replace the experience that the seniors have played in their career. Over their career, by my math, the seniors have combined to play in 433 career matches, led by the 106 from Carsten and the even 100 from Malek. The sets played are even higher for the seniors. Losing seniors is always tough, both on and off the floor

·   OFF THE FLOOR. Speaking of fantastic off the floor, this group will be missed. Megan Schoenfelder, Carizma Muth, Emma Malek, Kailee Waasdorp and Madison Carsten have been a key part of the Golden Eagle Student Athlete Advisory Committee for multiple years and have been a key part of that group.  In the classroom, they have been fantastic as well, being named to All-Academic NSIC teams and All-District teams, as well. This senior class also helped Minnesota Crookston earn the 2025 AVCA Team Academic Award.

·  LAST TIME FOR EVERYTHING. This will be my last time revolving a headline around Madison Carsten in the game notes. Seems crazy, doesn't it? Well, Carsten's career will go down as one of the best to wear the maroon and gold. Carsten is one of three Golden Eagles with at least 1,000 kills and 1,000 digs. Carsten had over 200 kills in each of her four years, including 342 as a junior last year, where she was also named NSIC Player of the Week during her first week as a junior. This season, the senior is hitting a career best .191 on the season and is averaging 2.81 kills per set throughout her illustrious career. It's tough to forget her match a season ago at home against Minnesota Duluth, where she finished with 26 kills against the nationally-ranked Bulldogs. Carsten is hoping to finish her career on a high note this weekend.

• MISS CONSISTENCY. Not to be mistaken for Miss Congeniality, Emma Malek has been the definition of consistency for four seasons. The Illinois native has put up consistent numbers ever since she stepped foot on campus. Whether it was setting as a freshman, having to serve and playing in the back, or playing in her natural position in the front, she has done whatever has been asked of her. Malek has 490 kills in her career, including back-to-back seasons with 150 or more as a sophomore and junior. The senior has eight matches with 10 or more kills in her career, including six in her sophomore season. Malek would love nothing more than to get to a sweet number of 500 kills in her career to wrap-up her Golden Eagle career.

·   WIZARD OF WAAS. Unfortunately, we haven't seen a ton of Kailee Waasdorp since midway through her junior year last year and what a shame it is that we couldn't see Waas do her thing in the back. Kailee was on track to be one of the best backrow players in Minnesota Crookston history and proved that with how many 30 dig matches she had in her first 2 1/2 seasons. Still, Kailee will graduate with over 1,300 digs in her career and has two of the best dig total seasons in program history with over 420 as both a freshman and senior. Heck, before she got injured as a junior, Waasdorp was on her way to over 500 digs a season ago. Not having No. 6 in the maroon and gold will be something to get used to.

• OG5. The senior group in Carsten, Muth, Malek, Waasdorp and Schoenfelder, along with Vertin, have been through a lot of ups and downs and in the world of the college sports, it could've been easy to jump ship, but credit them for sticking with it and earning the prestigious degrees. We're all gonna miss the Carsten kills, the Muth aces, the Malek, Vertin and Schoenfelder blocks and the Waasdorp digs, but the people they have become means a heck of a lot more than the scoreboard. By the way, the CSC didn't come up with the 'OG5', but it kind of rolls off the tongue, doesn't it?

• ONCE A GOLDEN EAGLE, ALWAYS A GOLDEN EAGLE. These seniors have grown so much on and off the floor and have gone through ups and downs as student-athletes, like most do. They have won matches, travelled places they might not have ever thought of going to, played in the best Division II conference in the world and most importantly, they will graduate with one of the most prestigious degrees in the country. Madison, Carizma, Emma, Megan, Kailee and Penelope, thanks for all the memories, all the matches played and for all the laughs you have given to your Sports Information Director. I speak for all of Golden Eagle nation when I say, Once a Golden Eagle, Always a Golden Eagle.

Series Quick Look vs the opponents
UJ leads the all-time series 5-1
Northern State is 36-4 all-time against the Golden Eagles

How to Follow

Jamestown @ Minnesota Crookston
Friday, Nov. 6
5 PM
Crookston, Minn. / Lysaker Gymnasium
Senior Weekend
Live Stats -- https://goldeneaglesports.com/sidearmstats/wvball/media
Watch Live -- https://midcosportsplus.com/?school=university-of-minnesota-crookston

Northern State @ Minnesota Crookston
Saturday, Nov. 7
2 PM
Crookston, Minn. / Lysaker Gymnasium
Senior Weekend
Live Stats -- https://goldeneaglesports.com/sidearmstats/wvball/media
Watch Live -- https://midcosportsplus.com/?school=university-of-minnesota-crookston

#OPPONENTOUTLOOK

JAMESTOWN. The Jimmies enter the final stretch of the regular season at 17-9 overall and 10-8 in NSIC play. Jamestown has been especially strong defensively, averaging 17.16 digs per set and 2.26 blocks per set, ranking 3rd and 2nd in the NSIC, respectively. Jamestown currently sits 8th in the NSIC conference standings.

ADAMSON LEADS THE CHARGE. Gracie Adamson, a senior from Brookings, South Dakota leads the Jimmies with 322 kills and averages 3.46 kills per set. The 5'10" outside hitter contributes 3.47 digs per set, which gives her an important role on both sides of the ball. Adamson has recorded 30 service aces this season.

LEMPKA IN THE MIDDLE. Charlotte Lempka, an Alexandria, Minnesota native has been a major presence at the net, recording 233 kills while hitting .349, which is good for 9th in the conference. She averages 2.51 kills and 0.91 blocks per set. Her depth at the net gives Jamestown another efficient offensive option.

KETTERLING KEEPS IT ALIVE. Sophie Ketterling has been a big piece of the puzzle for the Jimmies' success. The libero from Napoleon, North Dakota has led the back-row, averaging 5.54 digs per set which ranks her 1st in the NSIC and 8th in the nation. Ketterling has notched 543 kills this season, which leads the NSIC.  

NORTHERN STATE. The Wolves are 19-7 overall and 14-4 in NSIC play, putting together a strong season with wins over several conference opponents. Northern State is receiving votes in the latest AVCA Coaches Poll and ranks 4th in NSIC standings.

DISH IT OUT. Ava Nilsson, the setter from Mansfield, South Dakota leads the Wolves' offense with 11.63 assists per set, ranking first nationally. She has averaged 0.34 service aces per set and 2.39 digs per set. Northern State averages 12.90 assists per set to help lead an offense that ranks among the best in Division II.

BIG SWING FROM SCHROEDER. Katelyn Schroeder, the outside hitter from Tulare, South Dakota leads the Wolves with 388 kills and averages 4.00 kills per set, which is good for 10th and 19th nationally, respectively. Schroeder has recently come off some hot matches, recording 46 kills across three matches against Minot State, Bemidji State, and Minnesota Duluth.

WINNING IN WACHS. Northern State has been especially successful at Wachs Arena, posting a 9-1 home record. The Wolves are hitting .289 at home and averaging 14.47 kills per set. They have also held opponents to a .179 hitting percentage in those matches.