No. 8 Huskies Advance to NSIC Tournament Championship Match After Taking Down No. 1 Wayne State in Five-Set Thriller

Saturday, November 18

Wayne, Neb.

4:30 P.M. CT

St. Cloud State

22-7,13-5NSIC

Wayne State

28-2,18-0NSIC

St. Cloud St.

Wayne St. (NE)

Photo by: Dylan De Baldo

No. 8 Huskies Advance to NSIC Tournament Championship Match After Taking Down No. 1 Wayne State in Five-Set Thriller

11/18/2023 9:52:00 PM | Volleyball

Box Score NSIC Tournament Page

SCSU recorded first program win over a No. 1 team, will play in fourth consecutive tournament championship match against No. 4 CSP on Sunday at 3:00 p.m. CT

WAYNE, Neb. – No. 8 St. Cloud State Volleyball (22-7, 13-5 Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference) recorded its eighth straight NSIC Tournament win after a five-set thriller vs. No. 1 Wayne State in the NSIC Tournament Semifinals on Saturday evening at Rice Auditorium in Wayne. The Huskies took the match 20-25, 25-23, 25-14, 19-25 and 15-11 over the Wildcats (28-2, 18-0 NSIC), recording their first win over a No. 1 team in program history after previously going 0-28. In those previous 28 matches, the Huskies had only won one set three times and had never won two or more sets. Tonight's match was the fourth match vs. a No. 1 ranked team this season alone and the fifth time in the past two seasons.

SCSU is riding an eight-match unbeaten streak in the NSIC Tournament, dating back to the start of the 2021 tournament. SCSU has won the last two NSIC Tournament Championships and will be playing in its fourth consecutive title match.

NSIC Player of the Year, senior outside hitter Kenzie Foley (Sergeant Bluffs, Iowa) led the way with a game-high 27 to go along with 14 digs – her 20^th double-double of the season. The Huskies owned a .477 kill percentage on sets by sophomore All-NSIC Second Team honoree setter Emma Berran (Inver Grove Heights, Minn.) as she provided a match /career single-game high 63 assists. Berran also dug nine balls and had four block assists. Junior libero Keely Kurschner (Maplewood, Minn.) recorded a match-high 18 digs and tallied five service aces to tie her career single-game high mark. Freshman middle blocker Hannah Bruskiewicz (Rogers, Minn.) sent down 17 kills on .429 hitting and recorded five block assists. Freshman Shelby Kimm (North Liberty, Iowa) did a little bit of everything for the Huskies, recording 14 digs, seven kills and three service aces.

QUOTABLES – St. Cloud State head coach Chad Braegelmann

"Just a fantastic win tonight. The first set was a real struggle for us – quite a few of our attackers were hitting negative, but we fought back. The second set was close the whole way and we did a fantastic job of finishing it out. The third set was very clean. Keely had a huge 4-point run in the fifth to give us some room. Our passers were solid and Hannah (Bruskiewicz) and Kenzie (Foley) were so good on offense. It was a total team win and we couldn't be more proud of them!"

NOTABLES

SCSU won its first match in program history over a No. 1 team (1-28 all-time now).
SCSU is headed to its fourth consecutive NSIC Tournament Championship Match (it has won the last two).
Foley moved up to No. 2 for most kills in a season (516) would need 101 more this season to break it
Foley led the game in kills with 27. She also added 14 digs and one block assist. She recorded her 20^th double-double and 10^th match with 20+ kills this season.
Berran recorded a match-high 63 assists which tied her career single-game best from last season. She also chipped in nine digs, four block assists and one kill.
Kurschner recorded a match-high 18 digs. She also tallied five service aces (tied her career single-game high) and three assists.
Bruskiewicz recorded the second most kills in the game (17) on .429 hitting. She also recorded five block assists, two digs and one service ace.
Kimm recorded 14 digs, seven kills, three service aces and one block assist.
All-NSIC First Teamer, redshirt sophomore Sam Zimmerman (Moorhead, Minn.) tallied 10 kills and three block assists.
Junior opposite Natalie Tesch (Milwaukee, Wis.) sent down eight kills and recorded three digs, three block assists and one solo block.
Senior defensive specialist Allena Shimon (Des Moines, Iowa) dug 12 balls and provided one assist.

UP NEXT
The Huskies postseason journey continues on Sunday at 3:00 p.m. CT when they play No. 4 Concordia-St. Paul in the NSIC Tournament Championship Match at Rice Auditorium in Wayne. Live coverage will be available on the NSIC Network* with live stats provided by Wayne State. Links to each coverage option will be available on the SCSU Volleyball schedule page.

*NOTE –
NSIC Network Access: The NSIC championship will be streamed on the NSIC Network for a charge of $10. Fans are encouraged to purchase access prior to the match as an account will need to be set up in order to access the matches. FAQ and troubleshooting information is available on the NSIC Network Help page.

In-Venue Tickets: Fans are encouraged to purchase tickets in advance of the tournament. Ticket options include a mobile version or a print at home option. www.northernsun.org/Tickets.

For all the latest on St. Cloud State Volleyball, stay tuned to SCSUHuskies.com and follow the team on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.