Volleyball hosts Winona State, Upper Iowa in NSIC opener

Friday, September 20

St. Cloud, Minn.

6 p.m.

St. Cloud State

Winona State

Photo by: Kylie Macziewski

9/18/2019 11:01:00 AM | Volleyball

ST. CLOUD, MINN. – The St. Cloud State University volleyball team has not had an easy start to the 2019 season. In the past two weeks, the Huskies have faced, and defeated, two nationally ranked opponents, and the next weekend is not about to get any easier as they host (RV) Winona State University and No. 25 Upper Iowa University to open Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) play.

St. Cloud State enters the NSIC season with a perfect 8-0 record, the team's best start to a season since 1985. The Huskies have also won 10 straight matches dating back to 2018, with two of those 10 coming against NSIC opponents.

St. Cloud State will host Winona State on Friday, September 20 with first serve schedule at 6 p.m. before hosting No. 25 Upper Iowa at 2 p.m. on Saturday. Live stats and video will be available for fans who are unable to attend the matches in person and score updates can be found on St. Cloud State volleyball's official Twitter page (@SCSUhuskies_vb).

Here are the five things to know before this weekend's NSIC matches:

19 – Monday proved to be quite the day for the Huskies, as they received their first AVCA Top-25 ranking since 1997. After wins over No. 21 Michigan Tech and No. 14 Wheeling last weekend, the Huskies received 292 votes in this week's poll to fall at No. 19. In the top-25 rankings. Also in the top-25 was the Peacocks, who found themselves in a tie for the No. 25 spot, while the Warriors were just on the outside looking in after receiving 76 votes.

10 – St. Cloud State, Winona State and Upper Iowa were just three of the 10 teams from the NSIC to either receive votes or be ranked in the latest edition of the AVCA Division II Top-25 Coaches poll. In addition to the Huskies, Warriors and Peacocks, Minnesota- Duluth (No. 4), Concordia-St. Paul (No. 6), Northern State (No. 8), Southwest Minnesota State (No. 9), Wayne State (No. 20) and Sioux Falls (No. 25) all cracked the top-25 while Augustana continued to receive votes.

1997 – The last time St. Cloud State was ranked in the top-25, Princess Diana just died in a tragic car accident and blockbuster "Titanic" was not yet released in theaters. Additionally, "The Lion King" was not yet a Broadway phenomenon, the first edition of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (then known as "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone") was given a limited release earlier that summer, Teletubbies were unleashed on children everywhere and Steve Jobs regained control of Apple. Oh, and the Huskies juniors, sophomores and first years were not born yet.

1-1 – St. Cloud State split its series with Winona State and Upper Iowa last season, falling to the Peacocks in a five setter 3-2 (25-18, 23-25, 22-25, 25-23, 13-14) before earning a key sweep over the Warriors 3-0 (26-24, 25-22, 25-22) the next day. Maddy Torve (Loretto, Minn. / Heritage Christian Academy) was on fire for the Huskies that particular weekend, as she set her career-high with 57 assists in the loss to Upper Iowa, while then junior libero Clara Krenz (Oakdale, Minn. / North St. Paul) cemented herself as one of the best defensive specialists in program history against Winona State. In just three sets, Krenz recorded an impressive 34 digs, the sixth-highest number of single-match digs in program history.

4 – The Huskies have won their last four home openers against NSIC opponents and look to make it five straight Friday evening. In each of the last four seasons, St. Cloud State has beat either Bemidji State or Minnesota-Crookston to open the conference season, giving the team a perfect 4-0 record since 2015.