MATCH NOTES
This week: Augustana (12-14, 8-9 NSIC) is back on the road this weekend to take on Upper Iowa (8-17, 5-11 NSIC) Friday at 7 p.m. and Winona State (11-13, 6-10 NSIC) Saturday at 4:30 p.m. This is the Vikings' second meeting with both teams.
Series records: Augustana is 3-0 against Upper Iowa. When the Vikings faced UIU earlier this season, Augustana topped the Peacocks 3-0. The Vikings also swept UIU during the first meeting between the two teams in 2008. In 1979, Augustana first took on Winona State and the Vikings are now 17-1 against the Warriors. On Sept. 18, the Vikings hosted WSU and won 3-1.
Last week: Augustana went 1-2 last week, facing No. 1 Concordia University, St. Paul twice and falling to the Golden Bears 3-0 both times. The Vikings also took on St. Cloud State and clinched a 3-2 victoy over the Huskies.
Five-set thriller: Augustana has been pushed into four five-set matches this season. Prior to this past weekend, the Vikings were 0-3 in winning those close contests, but last Friday's conference tilt changed that. Augustana puled out its first five-set vicory this season, knocking off the pesky Huskies by scores of 25-21, 20-25, 25-18, 19-25, 15-2.
Fierce freshman: The Vikings had a freshman take the spotlight in last weeks matches.
Holly Hafemeyer (Fairbault, Minn.) terminated 23 balls in Augustana's three matches last week. Hafemeyer recorded a career-high nine kills against St. Cloud State to hit .333. Her six blocks against the Huskies also helped the Vikings emerge vicotorious in the five-set contest.
Seeing double: Jordan Spatenka (Owatonna, Minn.) put down 29 kills last week, while posting double-figures in two of the Vikings' matches. Spatenka had 11 kills against both St. Cloud State and Concordia University, St. Paul.
Among the best in the NSIC: Grace Sanders (Libero, Lakeville, Minn.) and
Dani Haley (Setter, Owatonna, Minn.) have been among the leaders in the NSIC week after week in their respective categories. In the current standings, Sanders has stolen the No. 2 spot in the conference, averaging 5.5 digs a match during the Vikings' conference season, while Haley sits at No. 6 with a 9.97 assists average. In the Vikings' matches last week, Sanders accumulated 58 digs (5.27 per set) and Haley totaled 94 assists (8.55 per set) .
On the road: Augustana will look to improve upon its away record this weekend. Currently, the Vikings hold a 3-6 record on the road, with wins against U-Mary, Northern State and Minnesota, Crookston.
Conference standings: Augustana checks in at No. 7 in the latest NSIC standings. Winona is tied for No. 9 in the standings, while Upper Iowa is tied for No. 11.
Who's back: Lone senior
Brianna Erickson (Gurnee, Ill.) will help lead the Vikings through the 2010 season. Erickson captained the team in 2009 and was second on the team in blocks per set with 0.95 in 2009. Along with Erickson, Augustana returns eight players.
Who's new: The Vikings welcome four new faces to this season's roster. Christine Beliski (Chaska, Minn.),
Kayla Wallerich (Marshall, Minn.) and
Holly Hafemeyer (Fairbault, Minn.) are all Minnesota natives, while Lindsey Peterson (Elkhart, Iowa) comes to Augustana from Iowa.
Moving up: In 2009 Kasey Loeslie came to Augustana to work alongside head coach
Ashley Buckley as a graduate assistant coach. This season Loeslie is back to serve her first year as a full-time assistant coach for the Vikings.
Looking back: Last season, the Vikings finished seventh in the NSIC with a conference record of 9-11. Augustana's overall record for the 2009 season was 14-18 and marked the first time since 1995 that Augustana didn't make the NCAA tournament. Sophomore standout
Jordan Spatenka led the Vikings in kills last season with 23, while
Grace Sanders recorded team high 32 digs.
Dani Haley was first on the team in assists, tallying 50.
Coaches' corner: Ashley Buckley enters her third season as head coach and owns a career record of 48-41. She has guided the Viking to one NCAA?Tournament appearance and has coached three All-NSIC performers. Kasey Loeslie is in her second year as an assistant coach. Coaching along with Buckley and Loeslie is first year graduate assistant coach Lisa Hoegh.
Players to watch: Sophomore outside hitter
Jordan Spatenka was named a Preseason Player to Watch in the NSIC Preseason Coaches' Poll. She had 154 kills and 33 blocks last season.
History lesson: Augustana is in its 38th year of competition in 2010. The Vikings own an all-time record of 795-536-14. The Vikings have made 14 NCAA Tournament appearances, with the last one occurring in 2008.
What the coaches say: Augustana was picked to finish sixth in the conference by the 14 NSIC head coaches in their annual preseason poll. Augustana received 104 points in the poll. Concordia University, St. Paul's 11 first-place votes makes for the seventh consecutive season it has been selected as the top preseason team. Minnesota Duluth, Minnesota State, Wayne State and Southwest Minnesota State came in ahead of the Vikings.
Team (first-place votes) Points
1. Concordia, St. Paul (11) 166
2. Minnesota Duluth (2) 147
3. Minnesota State (1) 142
4. Wayne State 136
5. Southwest Minnesota State 134
6. Augustana 104
7. MSU Moorhead 95
8. Winona State 76
9. Upper Iowa 73
10. Northern State 62
11. St. Cloud State 54
12. Bemidji State 41
13. Minnesota, Crookston 25
14. U-Mary 19
Stay connected: Stay connected with Augustana volleyball all season long at www.GoAugie.com. The Vikings are also on Facebook and Twitter; just log onto www.facebook.com/GoAugie and www..twitter.com/GoAugie. To catch even more Viking action log onto Augustana's official YouTube channel at www.youtube.com/GoAugie.
Action packed: Live statistics of each home match can be viewed by logging onto www.GoAugie.com/livestats.
Watch it: All NSIC volleyball matches will be webcast live and free of charge on New Media TV. Fans wanting to follow the action can go to the following link: www.pennatlantic.com.
Schedule change: In Augustana's next match, the Vikings conclude their regular season with an away match against Wayne State on Nov. 12 at 7 p.m.
