No. 5 St. Cloud State Volleyball Readies for Road Trip to No. 24 UMD, Home Match against Bemidji State

Thursday, October 17

Romano Gymnasium • Duluth, Minn.

6 p.m. CT

St. Cloud State

Minnesota Duluth

Photo by: Justyce Porter

No. 5 St. Cloud State Volleyball Readies for Road Trip to No. 24 UMD, Home Match against Bemidji State

10/16/2024 5:09:00 PM | Volleyball

Huskies look to continue 10 match winning streak, extend program best start to a conference schedule

ST. CLOUD, Minn. – No. 5 St. Cloud State Volleyball (14-2, 8-0 NSIC) is set to continue its conference schedule this weekend when the Huskies travel to No. 24 Minnesota Duluth (9-7, 2-6 NSIC) on Thursday, Oct. 17 and then host Bemidji State (5-9, 0-6 NSIC) on Saturday, Oct. 19. First serve against the Bulldogs is scheduled for 6 p.m. CT from Romano Gymnasium in Duluth and 2 p.m. CT against Bemidji State from Halenbeck Hall in St. Cloud.

FOLLOW THE HUSKIES
@ No. 24 Minnesota Duluth (Romano Gymnasium – Duluth, Minn.) – Thursday, Oct. 17 / 6 p.m. CT / Livestream / Live Stats

vs. Bemidji State (Halenbeck Hall – St. Cloud, Minn.) – Saturday, Oct. 19 / 2 p.m. CT / Tickets / Livestream / Live Stats / Audio

Links to each coverage option can also be found on the St. Cloud State Volleyball schedule page.

MATCH DAY PROMOTIONS
Saturday, Oct. 19 vs. Bemidji State
Promotion: Dig Pink Match

LET'S GO POLLING
In the October 14 American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Division II Poll, St. Cloud State was ranked No. 5 for the second consecutive week. Prior to that, SCSU's last top-five ranking came in Week One of 2023 (Sept. 4) when the Huskies were also ranked No. 5.

List of St. Cloud State Volleyball Top-5 National Rankings
#3 – Week One of 1996
#4 – Week Four of 2022
#4 – Week Five of 2022
#5 – Week Two of 1988
#5 – Final Rankings of 2022
#5 – Week One of 2023
#5 – Week Five of 2024
#5 – Week Six of 2024

Under the direction of head coach Chad Braegelmann, the program has been ranked for 61 consecutive weeks (including 37 weeks in the top 10), dating back to the 2019 season. The Huskies have spent a total of 135 weeks in the AVCA top 20/25 Poll in program history, including 62 weeks in the top 10.

In the most recent AVCA Poll, seven NSIC schools and 11 teams from the Central Region were ranked in the Top 25/Receiving Votes

Oct. 14 AVCA Top-25 National Rankings (overall record)
#3 Nebraska Kearney^ (19-0)
#5 St. Cloud State* (14-2)
#7 Southwest Minnesota State* (17-1)
#8 Wayne State* (14-3)
#12 Concordia St. Paul* (13-4)
#13 Central Oklahoma^ (18-1)
#23 Northern State* (11-4)
#24 Minnesota Duluth* (9-7)
RV Missouri Western^ (14-4)
RV Washburn^ (13-4)
RV Minnesota State* (13-3)

*NSIC Team
^Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association (MIAA) Team

SERIES HISTORY
St. Cloud State Volleyball is 44-82 all-time against Minnesota Duluth. SCSU is 4-6 in the last 10 matchups and won the team's lone matchup of the 2024 season, a 3-0 sweep at Halenbeck Hall on Oct. 1. SCSU has struggled at Romano Gymnasium, owning a 4-22 all-time record on the road against the Bulldogs.

The Huskies are 51-23 all-time against Bemidji State. SCSU is 9-1 in its last 10 matches against the Beavers. SCSU defends its home court good against BSU, owning a 18-3 all-time record at Halenbeck Hall when playing the Beavers. The Huskies swept, BSU earlier this season on Sept. 28 in Bemidji.

HOME SWEET HALENBECK
SCSU Volleyball has enjoyed tremendous success in the friendly confines of Halenbeck Hall, going 49-7 (.875) in its last 56 home matches.

NSIC SPOTLIGHT
Fifth year outside hitter Kenzie Foley (Sergeant Bluff, Iowa) was featured on sixth episode of the 2024-25 Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) Spotlight series – the voice of the NSIC Student-Athletes – which was released on Oct. 16.

To watch the interview on YouTube, click here.

TEN IN A ROW
SCSU has won 10 straight matches including wins over No. 4 Southwest Minnesota State (sweep), No. 6 Wayne State, No. 9 Concordia-St. Paul (sweep), No. 15 Minnesota Duluth (sweep), No. 20 Michigan Tech and (RV) Minnesota State. It is the first time the Huskies have won at least 10 matches in a row since 2022, when SCSU strung together a 12-match win streak. All six of SCSU's sweeps this season have come during the eight-match win streak.

HISTORIC START TO CONFERENCE PLAY
St. Cloud State is off to its best conference in program history (8-0). The previous record was set in 1982 (Northern Sun Conference – NSC) and tied in 1985 (North Central Conference – NCC) when both teams finished their respective conference season with a perfect 7-0 record.

NSIC WEEKLY AWARDS
Fifth year outside hitter Kenzie Foley (Sergeant Bluff, Iowa) was named the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) Offensive Player of the Week, the league office announced on Oct. 14.

Foley has earned conference player of the week honors 11 times in her career and four times this season (Sept. 9 | Sept. 16 | Oct. 7 | Oct. 14). She was also named the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Division II National Player of the Week last week for the first time of the season and the third time in her career.

The Sergeant Bluff, Iowa native led the NSIC in kills/set (5.75) and points/set (6.38) while ranking second in points (51.0) and third in kills (46). She also contributed 2.50 digs/set and 0.63 blocks/set. Foley recorded the most kills (34) and points (37.5) in a single NSIC match during the week.

In Oct. 12's road win over No. 6 WSC, the fifth year outside hitter posted a 34-kill, 14-dig double-double on .387 hitting. She has 11 double-doubles in 2024 and 70 in her career. During Oct. 11's road sweep of Augustana, she led the match with 12 kills.

Foley's 34 kills broke the previous school record of 32, which was shared by Cami Selbitschka and herself. Foley and Selbitschka (1996) each sent down 32 kills in two matches during their career. Foley now has four career matches with 30+ kills including two this season. After tallying 10+ kills in Friday's match, she became the program's all-time leader in double-digit kill matches, with 98, passing former teammate and three-time All-American Lindsey Rachel.

Redshirt junior middle blocker Ella Thompson (Lakeville, Minn.) was tabbed as the NSIC Defensive Player of the Week on Oct. 7 after leading the NSIC in total blocks (16), tied for the lead in block assists (14), tied for fourth in solo blocks (2) and was fifth in blocks/set (1.60). She earned NSIC honors for the first time in her career and conference honors for the second time after being named Summit League Defensive Player of the Week on Nov. 15, 2022, while playing for South Dakota State.

Thompson also ranked second in kills (42), points/set (5.10) and points (51.0) while ranking third in kills/set (4.20) and 10th in hitting % (.413) amongst NSIC players. Thompson posted the most kills (20) and points (24.0) of any player in a 3-set match in the NSIC and the second most overall in all matches. Her 24.0 points were a new personal best, and her 20 kills tied her career best mark from earlier this season. In the Oct. 5 sweep of No. 4 SMSU, she totaled a match-high 20 kills (.486 hitting) and six block assists while scoring a career-high 24.0 points and in Friday's win over USF she tallied 17 kills (.483 hitting) and a season-high six block assists.

AVCA WEEKLY AWARDS
Fifth year outside hitter Kenzie Foley (Sergeant Bluff, Iowa) was named the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Division II National Player of the Week by the organization on Oct. 8. It was her first National Player of the Week honor of the year and the third of her career. The 2023 DII AVCA National Player of the Year is one of just four Huskies be named AVCA DII National Player of the Week in program history and is the only player to be honored more than once in her career.

As of October 14, Foley ranks No. 5 in kills/set (4.90), No. 5 in points/set (5.49) and No. 5 in total kills (289) among all Division II players. She also leads the NSIC in kills/set, points/set, total attacks (624), total kills and attacks/set (10.58), No. 17 in digs/set (3.24), No. 17 in hitting percentage (.280) and No. 18 in digs (191).

St. Cloud State players who have been the AVCA Division II National Player of the Week:
Kristi Kutter (Oct. 4, 1993)
Swen Minnema (Oct. 9, 1995)
Cami Selbitschka (Sept. 2, 1996)
Kenzie Foley (Sept. 11, 2022)
Kenzie Foley (Nov. 13, 2022)
Kenzie Foley (Oct. 8, 2024)

NCAA (Top-50) / NSIC (Top-20) STATISTICAL RANKINGS

Junior setter Emma Berran (Inver Grove Heights, Minn.)
- NCAA
  - No. 16 – assists/set (11.08)
  - No. 32 – assists (654)
- NSIC
  - No. 3 – assists/set (11.08)
  - No. 4 – assists (654)
Sophomore middle blocker Hannah Bruskiewicz (Rogers, Minn.)
- NSIC
  - No. 6 – hitting % (.349)
  - No. 17 – blocks/set (0.83)
  - No. 18 – blocks (48)
Fifth year outside hitter Kenzie Foley (Sergeant Bluff, Iowa)
- NCAA
  - No. 5 – kills/set (4.90)
  - No. 5 – points/set (5.49)
  - No. 5 – kills (289)
  - No. 37 – attacks/set (10.58)
- NSIC
  - No. 1 – kills/set (4.90)
  - No. 1 – kills (289)
  - No. 1 – points/set (5.49)
  - No. 1 – attacks/set (10.58)
  - No. 1 – attacks (624)
  - No. 17 – digs/set (3.24)
  - No. 17 – hitting % (.280)
  - No. 18 – digs (191)
Sophomore outside hitter Shelby Kimm (North Liberty, Iowa)
- NSIC
  - No. 4 – aces/set (0.44)
  - No. 15 – aces (22)
Senior libero Keely Kurschner (Maplewood, Minn.)
- NSIC
  - No. 6 – aces/set (0.42)
  - No. 7 – aces (25)
  - No. 9 – digs (248)
  - No. 10 – digs/set (4.20)
Redshirt junior middle blocker Ella Thompson (Lakeville, Minn.)
- NCAA
  - No. 35 – hitting % (.372)
- NSIC
  - No. 3 – hitting % (.372)
  - No. 5 – kills/set (3.29)
  - No. 3 – points/set (3.71)
  - No. 7 – kills (194)

PROGRAM LEADERBOARD STANDINGS / ACHIEVEMENTS

Junior setter Emma Berran (Inver Grove Heights, Minn.)
- No. 5 in career assists (591 more until No. 4)
- 1 more digs until 500 for her career
- 17 more aces until 100 for her career
Sophomore middle blocker Hannah Bruskiewicz (Rogers, Minn.)
- Surpassed 500 points for her career
- 76 kills until 500 for her career
Fifth year outside hitter Kenzie Foley (Sergeant Bluff, Iowa)
- No. 1 in career kills – broke Linsey Rachel's record that was set in 2022
- No. 1 in career points – passed SCSU Hall of Famer and volleyball legend, Kathy Davis, who had held the record for 36 years
- No. 1 in career double-digit kill matches – broke Linsey Rachel's record that was set in 2022
- No. 2 in career double-doubles (4 more until No. 1)
- No. 3 in career attacks (235 more until No. 3)
- No. 7 in career digs (65 more until No. 6)
- 5 points until 2,000 for her career
- 231 kills until 2,000 for her career
- 27 20+ kill matches in her career
- 4 30+ kill matches in her career
Senior libero Keely Kurschner (Maplewood, Minn.)
- No. 8 in career digs (65 more until No. 7)
Redshirt junior middle blocker Ella Thompson (Lakeville, Minn.)
- 6 blocks until 250 for her career