No. 2 St. Cloud State Volleyball Set for First Home NCAA Tournament Match in Program History

ST. CLOUD, Minn. – No. 2 St. Cloud State Volleyball (27-2, 18-0 Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference) plays its first home NCAA Tournament match in program history on Thursday evening against Ouachita Baptist (Ark.) (22-9, 10-6 Great American Conference). First serve for the match is scheduled for 7 p.m. from Halenbeck Hall.

Tournament Website | Spectator Information | NCAA Program | NCAA Tournament Bracket

FOLLOW THE HUSKIES
vs. Ouachita Baptist (Halenbeck Hall – St. Cloud, Minn.) – Thursday, Dec. 5 / 7 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.

HOME SWEET HALENBECK
SCSU Volleyball has enjoyed tremendous success in the friendly confines of Halenbeck Hall, going 57-7 (.891) in its last 64 home matches. The Huskies are a perfect 13-0 at home this season and have won 18 straight home matches, dating back to Oct. 20, 2023.

SERIES HISTORY
St. Cloud State Volleyball has never played Ouachita Baptist. OBU is making its first ever NCAA Tournament appearance.

NCAA TOURNAMENT HISTORY
The Huskies own a 4-9 all-time record in NCAA Tournament matches. Last season, SCSU dropped its first-round match to Central Missouri in St. Paul.

CONFERENCE TOURNAMENT CHAMPS
SCSU won its third NSIC Tournament Championship (2022, 2021) in program history, all coming in the last four years, while making its fifth straight NSIC Tournament Championship match appearance dating back to 2019. The Huskies moved to 13-2 (.867) all-time in NSIC Tournament matches.

PERFECT CONFERENCE SEASON
For the third time in program history (1982 and 1985) the Huskies finished conference play undefeated. 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. SCSU also became just the third NSIC team to post a perfect conference season since 2011.

REGULAR SEASON CHAMPS
St. Cloud State won its fourth regular season conference championship in program history, joining the teams from 2021 (NSIC), 1985 (NCC) and 1982 (NSC).

ALL-CENTRAL REGION HUSKIES
For the second consecutive season, fifth year outside hitter Kenzie Foley (Sergeant Bluff, Iowa) was named the Central Region Player of the Year by both the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) and the Division-II Conference Commissioners Association (D2CCA), as the organizations announced their All-Region teams on December 4.

Foley, redshirt junior middle blocker Ella Thompson (Lakeville, Minn.), junior setter Emma Berran (Inver Grove Heights, Minn.) and head coach Chad Braegelmann each received All-Central Region Honors. This is the fifth straight season that the Huskies have had at least two players named to the All-Region Teams and the second time ever SCSU has had three first team all-region honorees after Foley, Linsey Rachel and Maddy Torve were all AVCA First Team All-Central Region selections. It is the first time in SCSU Volleyball history that a coach has earned regional coach of the year honors.

In addition to being named region player of the year, Foley was a first team selection by both organizations, while Berran and Thompson were also picked to the first team by the AVCA. Thompson was a second team selection by the D2CCA and Braegelmann was named the Central Region Coach of the Year by the AVCA.

The fifth year outside hitter became the second player in program history to earn all-region honors for four consecutive years, after former teammate Linsey Rachel and the first player to be named to the First Team in all four years. Foley became the first player in program history to earn region player of the year honors last season and becomes the first two-time recipient this year.

Foley was named the NSIC Player of the Year for the second straight season (first player in program history after becoming the first Husky to win such honors a year ago) and was selected to the All-NSIC First Team for the fourth consecutive year. Prior to the season, she was voted as the program's first ever NSIC Preseason Player of the Year. Foley was named NSIC Offensive Player of the Week six times this season, bringing her career total to 13. She was also tabbed as the AVCA Division II National Player of the Week once in 2024 (third time of career). She was also named to the NSIC Tournament All-Tournament Team, the UP North Tournament All-Tournament Team and the Yotes Classic Showdown All-Tournament Team.

In 2024, the Sergeant Bluff, Iowa native has broken several program records including career kills, career points, career double-digit kill matches, single-match kills, career double-doubles. She is also two sets away from breaking the program record for all-time sets played. Among all DII players this season, she ranks top-five in kills, kills/set and points/set while also leading the NSIC in those categories.

Thompson earned all-region honors for the first time as a Husky in her first season playing for SCSU. She was a First Team All-NSIC selection and was picked as the NSIC Defensive Player of the Week once (Oct. 7). She was also named to the NSIC Tournament All-Tournament Team and the UP North Tournament All-Tournament Team.

The Lakeville native ranks No. 30 among DII players in hitting percentage and is top-six among NSIC players in hitting percentage, points/set, kills/set and total kills.

Berran earned the second all-region honors of her career after getting an honorable mention nod last season. This season, Berran was a First Team All-NSIC pick and was named NSIC Setter of the Week once (Nov. 11). She was also selected to the NSIC Tournament All-Tournament Team and the Yotes Classic Showdown All-Tournament Team. The Inver Grove Heights native currently ranks No. 5 in career assists in program history and became the first player in SCSU Volleyball history to surpass 1,000 assists in each of her first three seasons.

The junior setter ranks No. 7 in assists/set and No. 25 in total assists among DII players while ranking second in assists/set and fourth in total assists among NSIC players this season.

AVCA All-Central Region
First Team:
Emma Berran
Kenzie Foley
Ella Thompson

Player of the Year:
Kenzie Foley

Coach of the Year:
Chad Braegelmann

D2CCA All-Central Region
First Team:
Kenzie Foley

Second Team:
Ella Thompson

Player of the Year:
Kenzie Foley

AVCA Release | D2CCA Release (NSIC)

23 IN A ROW
SCSU has won a program record 23 straight matches. The 23-match win streak includes 12 wins over nationally ranked teams – No. 4 Southwest Minnesota State (sweep), No. 6 Wayne State, No. 8 Concordia-St. Paul (twice), No. 9 Concordia-St. Paul (sweep), No. 15 Minnesota Duluth (sweep), No. 18 Northern State (sweep), No. 20 Michigan Tech, No. 22 Northern State (sweep), No. 24 Minnesota Duluth (sweep), (RV) Minnesota State (sweep) and (RV) Minnesota State.

BRING OUT THE BROOMS
All 17 of SCSU's sweeps this season have come during the last 21 matches. The Huskies tied the program record for sweeps in a row (eight) that was set in 2022.

LET'S GO POLLING
In the final American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA)/TARAFLEX Division II Poll relased on Nov. 25, St. Cloud State received its highest ranking in program history, No. 2 for the fourth straight week. In the Oct. 21 and Oct. 28 polls, St. Cloud State was ranked No. 3, which matched program's previous highest national ranking. It is the sixth time (fifth consecutive) that the Huskies have been ranked in the top-3 and the fifth time during the tenure of head coach Chad Braegelmann.

List of St. Cloud State Volleyball Top-3 National Rankings
#2 – Week Twelve of 2024
#2 – Week Eleven of 2024
#2 – Week Ten of 2024
#2 – Week Nine of 2024
#3 – Week One of 1996
#3 – Week Seven of 2024
#3 – Week Eight of 2024

Under the direction of Braegelmann, the program has been ranked for 67 consecutive weeks (including 43 weeks in the top 10), dating back to the 2019 season. The Huskies have spent a total of 141 weeks in the AVCA top 20/25 Poll in program history, including 68 weeks in the top 10.

St. Cloud State Volleyball in the 2024 AVCA Polls
#10 – Preseason
#7 – Week One
#12 – Week Two
#12 – Week Three
#8 – Week Four
#5 – Week Five
#5 – Week Six
#3 – Week Seven
#3 – Week Eight
#2 – Week Nine
#2 – Week Ten
#2 – Week Eleven
#2 – Week Twelve

To view the AVCA poll, click here.

ALL-NSIC HUSKIES
St. Cloud State Volleyball was well recognized in the end-of-season Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) awards, as the league announced its selections on Nov. 13. Fifth year outside hitter Kenzie Foley (Sergeant Bluff, Iowa) won NSIC Player of the Year honors for the second consecutive season, while head coach Chad Braegelmann was named NSIC Coach of the Year for the third time. Additionally, a program-record five Huskies earned all-conference honors with three being named to the first ream and two earning second team honors.

Redshirt junior middle blocker Ella Thompson (Lakeville, Minn.) and junior setter Emma Berran (Inver Grove Heights, Minn.) joined Foley on the first team, while senior libero Keely Kurschner (Maplewood, Minn.) and sophomore middle blocker Hannah Bruskiewicz (Rogers, Minn.) were selected to the second team. Previously, the most Huskies to earn all-conference honors in a season was also five, in 1995 while SCSU was in the North Central Conference (NCC). The record for the most while as a member of the NSIC was four, in 2021 – the last time the Huskies won a NSIC regular season title.

Foley becomes the first player in program history to repeat as conference player of the year after becoming the first Husky to win such honors a year ago. She is the first Northern Sun player to win the award in back-to-back years since SMSU's Taylor Reiss won it three years in a row from 2016-2018.

Braegelmann was named NSIC Coach of the Year for third time (2019, 2021) after leading the Huskies to their fifth straight 20+ win season this season. He coached the Huskies to second NSIC regular season title in his tenure (third in program history and led a program-record five players to All-NSIC accolades (three first team, two second team) in addition to the back-to-back player of the Year, Kenzie Foley. Braegelmann coached the Huskies to its highest AVCA Coaches Poll ranking in program history (No. 2).

In her first season with the Huskies, Thompson ranks No. 4 in hitting percentage (.353), No. 4 in points/set (3.65) and No. 5 in kills/set (3.24) among NSIC players. She earned NSIC Defensive Player of the Week honors for the first time of her career on Oct. 7. This is the first all-conference honor of her career.

Berran is currently ranked No. 3 in assists/set (11.45) in the NSIC and No. 9 in all of NCAA Division II. She has guided the potent SCSU offense to conference leading hitting percentage (.286), kills/set (15.06) and points/set (18.78) marks. This is the second time she has been named an all-conference performer after being voted to the second team in 2023. Earlier this season, Berran earned her first NSIC Setter of the Week accolade of year and fourth of her career earlier this week.

Among Northern Sun players, Kurschner ranks No. 3 in service aces/set (0.44), No. 3 in service aces (38) and No. 9 in digs/set (4.23) this season. In serve-receive has made only 22 errors in 451 attempts for a reception percentage of .951. For the third season in a row, the senior libero leads the team in digs and for the second season in her career, she leads the team in aces. This season, Bruskiewicz ranks No. 5 in hitting percentage (.352), No. 16 in blocks/set (0.86) and is tied for No. 18 in kills/set (2.77) among NSIC players.

To read the NSIC release, click here.

WOLTERS KLUWER FEMALE ATHLETE OF THE MONTH
St. Cloud State Athletics announced that fifth year outside hitter Kenzie Foley (Sergeant Bluff, Iowa) was named the Wolters Kluwer Female Athlete of the Month for October after sweeping the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) Offensive Player of the Week honors during the month.

Kenzie Foley's October Highlights

Named NSIC Offensive Player of the Week every week of October (Oct. 7 | Oct. 14 | Oct. 21 | Oct. 28) to bring her season total to six and her career total to 13.
Named American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Division II National Player of the Week on Oct. 8 for the first time of the season and the third time in her career.
Set the program record for single match kills with 34 in a thrilling five set road victory over No. 6 Wayne State on Oct. 12, breaking the old record of 32 which was held by both Foley and Cami Selbitschka, who had each recorded 32 kills in two matches.
During October, Foley was No. 1 in kills/set (5.36), No. 1 in points/set (6.06), No. 1 in kills (177), tied for No. 1 in points (200.0), No. 5 in hitting percentage (.343), tied for No. 4 in service aces (14) and tied for No. 5 in service aces/set (0.42) among NSIC players.
As of October 28, Foley ranked No. 4 in kills/set (4.97), No. 4 in points/set (5.59) and No. 5 in total kills (368) among all Division II players. She was also leading the NSIC in kills/set, points/set, total kills and total attacks (769), and was No. 2 in attacks/set (10.39), No. 13 in hitting percentage (.299) and No. 19 in total digs (227).
SCSU went a perfect 10-0 during the month with eight sweeps and five wins over nationally ranked opponents.

NSIC WEEKLY AWARDS
Fifth year outside hitter Kenzie Foley (Sergeant Bluff, Iowa) has earned Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) Offensive Player of the Week honors 13 times in her career and six times this season (Sept. 9 | Sept. 16 | Oct. 7 | Oct. 14 | Oct. 21 | Oct. 21). She was also named the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Division II National Player of the Week on Oct. 8 for the first time of the season and the third time in her career.

Redshirt junior middle blocker Ella Thompson (Lakeville, Minn.) was tabbed as the NSIC Defensive Player of the Week on Oct. 7. It was the first NSIC honor of her career and second conference honor all-time after being named Summit League Defensive Player of the Week on Nov. 15, 2022, while playing for South Dakota State.

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.

AVCA WEEKLY AWARD
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.

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-25) INDIVIDUAL STATISTICAL RANKINGS
(as of 11/21)

Junior setter Emma Berran (Inver Grove Heights, Minn.)
- NCAA
  - No. 7 – assists/set (11.59)
  - No. 25 – assists (1,136)
- NSIC
  - No. 2 – assists/set (11.59)
  - No. 4 – assists (1,136)
Sophomore middle blocker Hannah Bruskiewicz (Rogers, Minn.)
- NSIC
  - No. 5 – hitting % (.346)
  - No. 14 – blocks/set (0.89)
  - No. 14 – blocks (88)
  - No. 23 – points/set (3.23)
Fifth year outside hitter Kenzie Foley (Sergeant Bluff, Iowa)
- NCAA
  - No. 5 – kills/set (4.93)
  - No. 5 – points/set (5.55)
  - No. 9 – kills (488)
  - No. 38 – attacks/set (10.79)
  - No. 48 – total attacks (1,068)
- NSIC
  - No. 1 – kills/set (4.93)
  - No. 1 – kills (488)
  - No. 1 – points/set (5.55)
  - No. 1 – attacks/set (10.79)
  - No. 1 – attacks (1,068)
  - No. 14 – hitting % (.287)
  - No. 16 – digs (319)
  - No. 17 – digs/set (3.22)
Sophomore outside hitter Shelby Kimm (North Liberty, Iowa)
- NSIC
  - No. 2 – aces/set (0.47)
  - No. 5 – aces (43)
Senior libero Keely Kurschner (Maplewood, Minn.)
- NSIC
  - No. 1 – aces/set (0.48)
  - No. 1 – aces (48)
  - No. 9 – digs/set (4.08)
  - No. 9 – digs (408)
Redshirt junior middle blocker Ella Thompson (Lakeville, Minn.)
- NCAA
  - No. 30 – hitting % (.365)
- NSIC
  - No. 2 – hitting % (.365)
  - No. 4 – points/set (3.72)
  - No. 4 – kills/set (3.28)
  - No. 6 – kills (325)
  - No. 23 – blocks (75)

NCAA (Top-10) / NSIC (Top-5) TEAM STATISTICAL RANKINGS
(as of 11/24)

NCAA
- No. 1 – kills/set (15.04)
- No. 3 – assists/set (13.80)
- No. 5 – hitting % (.288)
- No. 7 – winning % (.931)
NSIC
- No. 1 – winning % (.931)
- No. 1 – aces/set (1.96)
- No. 1 – assists/set (13.80)
- No. 1 – hitting % (.288)
- No. 1 – kills/set (15.04)
- No. 1 – opponents hitting % (.150)
- No. 3 – assists (1,380)
- No. 3 – kills (1,504)
- No. 5 – aces (196)

PROGRAM LEADERBOARD STANDINGS
(as of 11/24)

Junior setter Emma Berran (Inver Grove Heights, Minn.)
- No. 5 in career assists (109 more until No. 4)
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. 1 in single-match kills – broke a tie with Cami Selbitschka (1996)
- No. 1 in career double-doubles – broke Linsey Rachel's record that was set in 2022
- No. 1 in career attacks – broke Linsey Rachel's record that was set in 2022
- No. 2 in career sets played (2 more until No. 1)
- No. 5 in career digs (159 more until No. 4)
- No. 7 in career matches played (5 more until No. 6)
- 27 20+ kill matches in her career
- 4 30+ kill matches in her career
Senior libero Keely Kurschner (Maplewood, Minn.)
- No. 6 in career digs (33 more until No. 6)
- No. 8 in career service aces (8 more until No. 7)