ST. PAUL, Minn. – The Concordia University volleyball team (20-3, 13-2 NSIC) is set to play host to Minnesota State (14-8, 10-5 NSIC) for Dig Pink on Tuesday night at 7 p.m. The Mavericks defeated the Golden Bears in four sets back on September 16th.
 
The Golden Bears head into the match playing some of their best volleyball with five straight wins, including three against top-20 opponents, and 13 wins in the last 14 matches. This past weekend they traveled to #5 Southwest Minnesota State and won a dramatic match in five sets before heading to Sioux Falls and winning in four. Riley Hanson was dominant on the weekend with an outstanding .652 hitting percentage with 30 kills (3.33 per set) and not a single attack error in 46 attempts. She also added eight total blocks in an all-around solid performance.
 
Minnesota State bounced back from a tough five-set loss to Sioux Falls on Friday to grab a big four-set victory over #5 SMSU on the road. Krista Hassing led MSU with 19 kills and a .421 attack percentage in the win over SMSU while Ellie Van De Steeg added 48 assists.
 
Concordia has historically dominated the series against Minnesota State with 18 wins in 22 meetings, including winning 15 in a row from 2003-11, but MSU has had more success recently as they have won two out of the last five meetings.
 
Back in the first meeting this season, Concordia got off to a quick start by taking the first set before the Mavericks held them in check for the final three sets. After hitting .600 in the first set, CU hit .240 or below in each of the final three sets for a total of .250 for the match. MSU finished the match with a .289 hitting percentage. Anna Schlaak provided a bright spot for the Golden Bears with 16 kills on just 27 attempts for an efficient hitting percentage of .519. Schlaak fell three digs short of a double-double with seven. Chanrda Honebrink led the attack for the Mavericks with 20 kills and a .395 hitting percentage while Krista Hassing added 18 kills while hitting .371.