THIS WEEK
The North Dakota State volleyball team (6-9, 0-3 Summit) continues its road swing at Western Illinois (1-12, 0-2 Summit) on Thursday at 6:00 p.m. The Bison will close the week at St. Thomas (1-11, 0-2 Summit) on Saturday at 3:00 p.m.
LOOKING BACK
NDSU enters the weekend after dropping a 3-0 decision at South Dakota on Tuesday night. Ali Hinze paced the Bison posting double digits in kills for the 11th time this season with 10, while Raegen Reilly distributed a team-high 24 assists. Abby Stark led the way on the defensive end with a team-best nine digs.
ON THE ROAD AGAIN
The Bison are back on the road again and will play 15 of their first 17 matches away from home. NDSU played its first 12 matches of the season on the road before opening its home schedule last weekend against Kansas City and Oral Roberts.
SERVIN’ UP SOME ACES
NDSU leads the Summit League in service aces and ranks 19th in the nation with 98 this season. Ava Schmoll has connected on a team-high 17 aces, which ranks third in the Summit League. Abby Stark is also positioned fifth in the Summit League with 15.
A DYNAMIC DUO
Ali Hinze ranks third in the Summit League in total kills with 183, while Syra Tanchin is slotted fifth with 174 kills. North Dakota State is the only team in the Summit League to have two players slotted inside the top five in total kills.
SPEAKING OF DEFENSE
The Bison have battled on the defensive side of the court this season logging eight matches with 50 or more digs, including a season-high 73 against Charlottte. The Bison rank third in the Summit League in digs with 806 this season. Kaylee Hanger is positioned sixth in the Summit League with a team-high 167 digs.
DIRECTING TRAFFIC
Raegen Reilly has distributed a team-high 408 assists this season, which ranks fourth in the Summit League. She’s passed out 40 or more assists in five matches this season, including a season-high 51 in the win at Green Bay.
DENIED AT THE NET
Michelle Glover is slotted third in the Summit League in total blocks with 53.0 this season. She’s contributed three or more blocks in 10 matches this season and posted a season-high eight blocks in the season opener against UNI.
HANGER KEEPS CLIMBING
Kaylee Hanger has reached double digits in digs in nine matches this season and pushed her career total to 958 over four seasons, which ranks 28th in Bison history.
THE SERIES VS. WESTERN ILLINOIS
This will be the 30th all-time meeting in a series that dates back to 2005 with the Bison leading, 24-5. NDSU has won 14 of the last 15 meetings against
Western Illinois, including back-to-back sweeps last season.
In the most recent encounter last season, NDSU rolled past Western Illinois, 3-0, after limiting the Leathernecks to a .051 hitting percentage at Bentson Bunker Fieldhouse. Kelley Johnson contributed a double-double with 37 assists and 10 digs.
THE SERIES VS. ST. THOMAS
This will be the first meeting in the Division I era and third overall between NDSU and St. Thomas. The Bison have won the only two meetings after earning a 3-0 win in 1983 and 3-0 win in 1986.
*Courtesy Myles Johnson, NDSU Athletics
