Women's Volleyball | 9/1/2026 3:33:00 PM

#TIDBITS

Golden Eagle volleyball will head to the Golden State for four more matches this weekend, starting on Thursday afternoon against UC Merced. The Golden Eagles will play three very new opponents and one very familiar opponent in Bemidji State. The maroon and gold will look to play more consistent volleyball this weekend in the final tune-up before the vaunted conference schedule awaits the Golden Eagles.

·   FIRST DAY, FIRST WIN. It didn't take the Golden Eagles new head coach Kathleen Rustad long to get her first win of hopefully many Golden Eagle victories. The Golden Eagles jumped out to a dominant 2-0 lead against Lake Superior State, but saw the Lakers win the next two sets and take a 14-10 lead over the Golden Eagles in the fifth set, until Ellery Ehresmann went on a 6-0 run to win the match in thrilling fashion. The Golden Eagles showed a lot of grit in that win over LSSU and the Golden Eagles will hope that carries over this weekend in California.

·   CUT DOWN ON THE ERRORS. Minnesota Crookston may have had one too many errors to one's liking this past weekend. The Golden Eagles ended the weekend with 72 errors, helped by 47 in their first two matches against South Dakota Mines and Lake Superior State. Granted, their opponents finished with 65 errors on the weekend, so it is only a minor difference, but the Golden Eagles would love to cut those attacking errors down heading into September.

·   22 KILLS? In the five set win over Lake Superior State, Lexi Scharold was DOMINANT. The junior from Kentucky finished with a career-high 22 kills in the match, while also finishing with 42 total attacks. Scharold's previous career high in kills was 12 and her career high in total attacks was 30, both set last year. The junior also hit .405 in the match, which is also a career watermark. Scharold put the Golden Eagles on her back and got them to the finish line, which is a great sign for the 2026 Golden Eagles.

·  THE FRESHMEN SHINE. Minnesota Crookston saw a number of freshmen make a number of impacts this weekend. Whether it was freshman Jacelyn Crane with her eight kills and team-leading 14 blocks on the weekend, Bella Peters and her 15 blocks on the weekend or Hannah Nesdahl and her 17 digs in the back row against Chadron State College, there were newcomers that made impacts and got their feet wet in the college game. That bodes well for the maroon and gold as we enter September.

• RIGHT WHERE SHE LEFT OFF. Coming off a fairly historic and career year last year for the Golden Eagles, it didn't take long for Madison Carsten to pick up right where she left off. The senior from Wadena was named to the Hardrocker Volleyball Tournament all-tournament team after ending the weekend leading her team in total attacks, points per set and service aces. Carsten ended the weekend with one double-double, with a 13 dig, 12 kill performance against Lake Superior State, the lone win for the Golden Eagles this past weekend.

·   STAY ON THE FLOOR. Abigail Ernster pretty much played all around the floor this past weekend for the maroon and gold. Ernster played nearly every rotation and had the best match of her young career against Lake Superior State, finishing with 11 kills on 36 total attacks, while also finishing with three service aces and 12 digs. Oh yeah, she also finished with two blocks, as well. The Golden Eagles will look for more of that from the sophomore.

• BIG AT THE NET. One very big positive takeaway from this past weekend was the Golden Eagles ability to get their hands on volleyballs at the net. The Golden Eagles ended the weekend with 24 total blocks as a team, out blocking their opponents in all but one match this past weekend, losing that battle 5-4, to Jamestown. The Golden Eagles ability to put up high hands at the net allowed a whopping seven players to have 16 or more digs just four matches into the season, led by Adrienne Venditto and her 40 digs. It's an all-around effort defensively and the Golden Eagles did a lot of good things on that side of the ball, which will bode well as they get into the thick of their season.

·   GOLDEN STATE FOR THE FIRST TIME. Judging by my count (not official at all), this will be the first time the Golden Eagles will head as far west as California for matches. In the Division II era, the Golden Eagles have gone to a number of places; Massachusetts, Florida, Texas, Michigan, Colorado, New Hampshire, Wisconsin, among others. Now, they will check off another state on their list and will play some new opponents. The Golden Eagles will hope that California has some wins they can take back to the Northstar State.

Series Quick Look vs the opponents
Minnesota Crookston has never played UC Merced
Minnesota Crookston has never played Cal State San Marcos
Minnesota Crookston leads the all-time series with BSU, 23-19
Minnesota Crookston has never played Saint Michael's

How to Follow

Watch Live -- https://go.flocollege.com/teams/ccaa-cal-state-san-marcos?sp=conf-partner-k7p2&utm_medium=partner&utm_source=multiple&utm_content=school-landing-page&utm_term=cal-state-san-marcos

Live Stats -- https://csusmcougars.com/sidearmstats/wvball/summary

#OPPONENTOUTLOOK

CALIFORNIA MERCED. The Bobcats will enter this weekend in San Marcos with an 0-3 record on the season, losing back-to-back three setters to Hawaii Hilo and Western Oregon and falling in four to Jessup to open the season. UC Merced is a program that is in the middle of a transition to Division II, starting play last year in D-II. The Bobcats and Golden Eagles will meet for the first time.

NAT ATTACK. Through three matches, it seems like the Bobcats have found their "go-to" attacker. Sophomore Natalie Riley leads the Bobcats with 37 kills through just those three matches, finishing with double-figure kills in every match, including 16 against Jessup. However, in that match against Jessup, Riley finished with a whopping eight service errors against the Warriors.

PIPELINE. We all know that California is a massive state, but the fact that UC Merced doesn't have to go outside the state to find players is kind of mind-boggling. The Bobcats have 21 players on their roster and every single one of them calls California home. Does it matter at all? Not really. Is it a really interesting fact that the Golden Eagle CSC finds interesting? Absolutely.

CALIFORNIA STATE SAN MARCOS. The Cougars are also three matches into the season and are 1-2 heading into The Cougar Classic as the host. CSU San Marcos has a common opponent this season, getting swept by Sioux Falls to open up the season, falling 19-25, 19-25, 16-25. The Cougars and Golden Eagles have never met.

AK19. Senior Addison Kranz is really good. The native of Anaheim, Calif., had a slow start to the season, finishing with just nine kills on 18 total attacks with three errors against USF. Kranz decided that wasn't good enough, finishing with 44 kills over the next two matches, with 22 apiece against Dominican (CA) and Northwest Nazarene. The senior was named to the CCAA All-Second team as a junior and looks well on her way to moving up a team this season.

MONEY. Part of the reason Kranz had a fantastic weekend was the ability of sophomore setter Blair Keith to get her the ball. In both of the matches that Kranz finished with 22 kills, Keith finished with 47 assists against Dominican and 46 assists against Northwest Nazarene. The sophomore has a ton of experience, playing in all 26 matches last year, making seven starts.

BEMIDJI STATE. BSU is off to their best start in nearly 3o years, starting 4-0 for the first time since 1999. The Beavers defeated Western New Mexico, UMary, Montana State Billings and Black Hills State en route to their fast start. It's a long way to go for two schools two hours apart to play, but the Golden Eagles and Beavers will meet for the 43 time and first in the state of California.

DIDN'T HURT THEMSELVES. One common theme this past weekend with BSU was their ability to play mistake free volleyball, for the most part. BSU left the weekend with an attacking percentage, hitting above the .200 mark in all but one of their four matches this weekend. On the flip side, Bemidji State is allowing opponents to hit below .150, which is a recipe for success.

NEW COACH ON THE SIDELINES. The Beavers have a new coach roaming the sideline this year, much like Minnesota Crookston. The Beavers are led by Hahni Johnson, who is on an interim tag and is in her second season at the helm of the Golden Eagles. Johnson was a great player for perennial power Colorado Mesa and also won Alaska Gatorade Player of the Year twice as a prep.

SAINT MICHAEL'S COLLEGE. If you think the Golden Eagles are traveling far to San Marcos, you'd be correct, but Saint Michael's College will be literally traveling across the United States for four matches. In fact, Saint Michael's, a school based in Vermont, is flying nearly 3,000 miles one way and are 1-2 on the season.

BALANCE. Unlike the three opponents the Golden Eagles will play in California, the Knights have more balance through three matches. Four attackers have 20 or more kills on the season, led by Tessa Lafrenier and Rory Tower, who lead the Knight attack with 28 total kills through three matches.

SERVE AND PLAY. Saint Michael's College has done a really nice job of serving this season, albeit in a small sample size. The Knights have 32 service aces through the first weekend and three matches and finished with a whopping 15 in each match against Felician and Assumption. That'll be one thing to watch for this weekend when the Knights and Golden Eagles meet.