No. 7 St. Cloud State Volleyball Begins UP North Tournament with Gritty Win

Friday, September 13

SDC Gym • Houghton, Mich.

11:30 a.m. CT

St. Cloud State

4-1,0-0NSIC

Findlay (Ohio)

-41,00 GMAC

St. Cloud St.

Findlay

Hannah Bruskiewicz gets ready to serve against Findlay (Ohio) on Sept. 13, 2024 during a match at the UP North Tournament

Photo by: Matt Taylor - Michigan Tech Athletics

No. 7 St. Cloud State Volleyball Begins UP North Tournament with Gritty Win

9/13/2024 6:29:00 PM | Volleyball

Box Score

Huskies beat Findlay (Ohio) in four sets, Foley’s double-double streak reaches five

HOUGHTON, Mich. – No. 7 St. Cloud State Volleyball (4-1, 0-0 Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference) took down Findlay (Ohio) in four sets – 25-12, 25-20, 23-25, 26-24 – on Friday afternoon at the SDC Gym in Houghton, Mich. to open its UP North Tournament Slate.

SCSU led the Oilers (4-1, 0-0 Great Midwest Athletic Conference) in kills (57-44), aces (11-3), assists (53-41) and digs (63-49) while UF led in blocks (8-4). The Huskies trailed much of the fourth set, before finishing off a 9-4 run to take set and avoid the match going to a fifth set.

Fifth-year outside hitter Kenzie Foley (Sergeant Bluff, Iowa) and redshirt junior middle blocker Ella Thompson (Lakeville, Minn.) led the Huskies to victory, posting a 16-kill, 13 dig double-double and career high 16 kills and 17.5 points on .467 hitting and three block assists respectively.

TOP HUSKIES

Foley – 16 kill/13 dig double-double and two service aces
Thompson – career-high 16 kills on .467 hitting and three block assists
Senior libero Keely Kurschner (Maplewood, Minn.) – season high 18 digs and three aces
Junior setter Emma Berran (Inver Grove Heights, Minn.) – season high 44 assists and nine digs

QUOTABLE – St. Cloud State head coach Chad Braegelmann
"Findlay was leading the nation in hitting efficiency I believe, and we saw why. Their middles are very fast and put so much pressure on you defensively. I was proud of the way our team responded and defended them. Early on we got some fantastic block touches, and we served tough throughout. [Senior libero] Keely Kurschner, [junior defensive specialist] Emily Kern and [sophomore defensive specialist] Annika Forbes did a fantastic job getting them out of system. I loved the way we battled back at both the end of the third and fourth sets – we showed some toughness there."

NOTABLES

SCSU is now 1-0 all-time against Findlay.
The Huskies are on a four-game winning streak.
Foley's 16 kills tied for the match lead while her digs were second most. She recorded her 64^th career double-double (five consecutive) and 89^th career match with 10+ kills.
Thompson's kills tied for the match lead. Her kills (16) and points (17.5) were both new career highs. She has sent down double-digit kills in four matches this season and has hit over .400 in all five.
Kurschner's 18 digs were a new season high. She moved into the 10^th spot on the program's career digs list. She has recorded 10+ digs in every match this season.
Berran dished out a match-high 44 assists. She was just one dig short of continuing her double-double streak which ends at three.
Freshman outside hitter Carlie Willis (Grundy Center, Iowa) made her first career appearance and start for the Huskies and sent down eight kills
Sophomore middle blocker Hannah Bruskiewicz (Rogers, Minn.) tallied nine kills, ending her double-digit kill streak at two matches.
Junior defensive specialist Emily Kern (Belgrade, Minn.) made her second straight start and posted a season-high 10 digs and added three aces.

UP NEXT
The Huskies wrap up their time in Houghton on Saturday with two matches. SCSU will play Northern Michigan at 9 a.m. CT and host school Michigan Tech at 2 p.m. CT to conclude the 2024 UP North Tournament. Links to each coverage option are listed below and are also available on the SCSU Volleyball schedule page.

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