SIOUX FALLS, S.D. — The Augustana volleyball welcomes No. 7 Northern State and MSU Moorhead to the Elmen Center in the regular-season finale on Friday and Saturday. First serve on Friday against Northern State is set for 6 p.m. while the first serve is at 5 p.m. on Saturday against MSU Moorhead. 

The Matches
Friday's match against the Wolves is Parent's night. Saturday's match against the Dragons is Senior Night honoring Jessica Simon and Sophia Terwilleger as well as Alumni Night. Saturday's match also has a ticket deal, if you show your ticket from football you get a five dollar ticket to the volleyball match. 

The Wolves (22-14, 15-3 NSIC) 
Northern State enters this weekend ranked No. 7 in the latest AVCA DII poll. The Wolves enter the weekend splitting a pair of matches against No. 18 SMSU and Sioux Falls. Northern State lost in a five-set thriller to No. 18 SMSU before finishing the weekend defeating Sioux Falls 3-1. Earlier this season the Wolves defeated Augustana 3-1 in September. 

Northern State is led by Laura Synder offensively with 4.14 kills per set and Jenna Reiff with 3.43 kills per set. Ashley Rozell has a team-high 12.1 assists per set which ranks second in the NSIC. Defensively, Jaiden Langlie averages 4.55 digs per set and Peyton Ellingson with 102 blocks for 1.20 blocks per set. 

As a team, the Wolves average 14.7 kills, 13.6 assists and 1.2 aces per set. Defensively, NSU averages 16.1 digs per set and 2.1 blocks per set. Augustana holds a 23-12-2 record all-time against the Wolves and an 8-6-2 record while in the Elmen Center. 

The Dragons (9-17, 4-4 NSIC) 
MSU Moorhead enters this weekend after dropping its last two matches and eight of the last nine. The Dragons dropped a 3-1 match to Sioux Falls and a 3-0 match to No. 18 SMSU this weekend. 

MSU Moorhead is led by Amanda Carlson with 1.95 kills per set and Kaylyn Jenkins with 1.89 kills per set. Amber Bretwisch has a team-high 5.26 assists per set while Jenkins leads the team with a .315 hitting percentage. Defensively, Taylor Thorson averages a team-high 3.19 digs per set while Jenkins leads the team with 79 blocks on 0.87 blocks per set. 

As a team, the Dragons average 10.6 kills per set, 9.8 assists and 1.3 aces per set. Defensively, MSUM averages 13.1 digs per set and 1.8 blocks per set. Augustana holds a 24-7 record all-time and an 8-2 record inside the Elmen Center against the Dragons. 

The Vikings (19-8, 12-6 NSIC)
Augustana enters this weekend with a seven-match win streak, which is currently the longest in the NSIC. The Vikings defeated cross-town rival Sioux Falls, UMary and Minot State last week. Augustana has also won eight of the last nine matches including wins over then No. 8 St. Cloud State, No. 12 Wayne State and No. 15 SMSU. 

On Monday, freshman Erika Bute earned her second NSIC Defensive Player of the Week after averaging 5.2 digs per set and racked up 56 total digs over the three matches. She also added five assists and four aces on the week.

The Vikings are led offensively by Maddy Guetter with 3.1 kills per set and Grace Haberland with 2.4 kills per set. Avery Thorson has a team-high 10.2 assists per set and is second on the team with 2.7 digs per set. Defensively, Bute has averaged a team-high 5.48 digs per set which ranks second in the conference and 27th in the nation. Abby Benson and Izzy Sommers led the charge in the front row. Benson has a team-high 83 blocks while Sommers has 64 blocks on the season. 

As a team, the Vikings average 13.1 kills, 12.0 assists and 1.7 aces per set. Defensively, Augustana averages 17.9 digs per set and 1.7 blocks per set. The Vikings rank second in digs per set and third in aces in the NSIC this season. 

One Last Thing
Sophomore setter Avery Thorson is 52 assists from 2,000 career assists. The Sioux Falls, South Dakota, native has led the team the past two years in assists. Thorson averages 10.2 assists per set which ranks her sixth in the NSIC. She recorded a career-high 50 assists earlier this season against Minot State.