St. Cloud State
Minnesota Duluth
Huskies to face rival Bulldogs, Golden Eagles in ghoulish fashion
10/27/2021 12:00:00 PM | Volleyball
ST. CLOUD, MINN. - It's rivalry week for the St. Cloud State University volleyball team. There are just two Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) teams the #14 Huskies have not faced this season, and those are the two teams they will face this week. First, St. Cloud State will face rival (RV) Minnesota-Duluth on the road Thursday evening before hosting Minnesota-Crookston at home Saturday afternoon.
The Huskies will have to travel to open the unique home-and-home weekend, though a trip to Duluth, Minnesota has been a stable of St. Cloud State's schedule for the last several years. In fact, the Huskies and Bulldogs typically square off twice in the same season, though that changed back in 2019 when the NSIC switched traditional travel partners. Now, St. Cloud State and Minnesota-Duluth settle for one match a (regular) season, which will occur Thursday, October 28 at 6:00 p.m. CT in Duluth, Minnesota.
Of course, the Bulldogs aren't the only team the Huskies have to worry about this weekend. After facing Minnesota-Duluth on Thursday, St. Cloud State has to turn around and host Minnesota-Crookston at 2:00 p.m. CT on Saturday, October 30 in what will serve as the team's annual Halloween match. Fans can participate in a Halloween costume contest, the winner of which will be selected between the second and third sets. Additionally, students and fans will receive double rewards points for their attendance on Saturday.
Live stats, video and KVSC radio coverage will be available for both matches this upcoming weekend, and score updates will be made to the team's official Twitter account (@scsuhuskies_vb) when possible.
Here are the five things to know before this weekend's volleyball matches:
7/5 - As always, the match between the Huskies and Bulldogs promises to be one of the best of the season. No team in the NSIC is hotter than St. Cloud State right now, except maybe Minnesota-Duluth. The Huskies enter Thursday's competition with a seven-match win streak and an impressive 12-1 record in conference play. The Bulldogs, on the other hand, have upsets on their mind, especially after their thrilling 3-2 win over #20 Michigan Tech Tuesday evening. The victory extended Minnesota-Duluth's win streak to five consecutive matches, though the Bulldogs are just 6-4 in their last 10 competitions.
4.14 - Although Minnesota-Duluth has seemingly fallen off their pedestal in 2021, the Bulldogs are still a formidable force in the NSIC. One of the main reasons is due to sophomore outside hitter Cianna Selbitschka, who ranks third in the NSIC in kills/set (4.14) and first in total kills (348). If the last name sounds familiar, that's because Selbitschka's aunt Cami played volleyball at St. Cloud State from 1993-96. In those four years, Cami Selbitschka set the program records for career kills, single-season kills and single-match kills and ranks top-10 in multiple statistical categories.
12.11 - The Huskies have plenty of firepower to match Minnesota-Duluth on Thursday, and it's all thanks to the setter running the show: Maddy Torve (Loretto, Minn. / Heritage Christian Academy). The fifth year senior was voted the NSIC Setter of the Week for the third time this season after leading St. Cloud Stat to a 2-0 weekend by averaging 12.11 assists/set against (RV) Northern State and MSU-Moorhead. Torve leads the conference in both assists/set (11.56) and total assists (890) this season, and ranks top-10 in the nation in both categories.
12 - It's not just Minnesota-Duluth the Huskies have to worry about this week, as they are set to host Minnesota-Crookston on Saturday as well. St. Cloud State has won five consecutive matches against the Golden Eagles and have not dropped a set since the 2015 season. In fact, the Huskies are currently riding a 12-set win streak against Minnesota-Crookston, having won in straight sets in four consecutive seasons.
2.43/1.12 - St. Cloud State is tops in the conference when it comes to blocking. As a team, the Huskies are averaging 2.43 blocks/set in NSIC play this season with a conference-leading 194.0 total blocks. On the flip side, the Golden Eagles are at the bottom when it comes to blocking. As of Wednesday, October 27, Minnesota-Crookston has tallied just 65.0 total blocks against NSIC opponents in 2021 for a 1.12 blocks/set average.
