ST. PAUL, Minn. – The No. 8 Concordia-St. Paul volleyball team (11-3, 7-0) will hit the road for a pair of Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference matches this weekend, playing at No. 17 Southwest Minnesota State (10-4, 3-4 NSIC) on Friday evening and Sioux Falls (9-6, 4-3 NSIC) on Saturday afternoon.
 
DOWNLOAD THE APP
Fans can download the CSP Bears fan app, free of charge and available in the App Store or on Google Play. The app contains rosters, schedules, scores, stats, news, social media and more! Customize your options to get notifications to your favorite teams, as well. Search "CSP Bears" in the app store to stay up to date on Golden Bear athletics.

WATCH ONLINE - NSIC NETWORK
All Golden Bear NSIC volleyball matches will be available to watch online, free of charge, powered by the NSIC Network, supported by BlueFrame Technology.

Visit nsicnetwork.com/cspbears on a laptop or desktop computer, download the NSIC Network app on your mobile device, or watch on your supported OTT provider such as Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV and Android TV. Search "NSIC Network" and download the app for the league's full sport and team lineups. NSIC NETWORK FAQ

BUY TICKETS TO HOME GAMES ONLINE
Fans are highly encouraged to purchase tickets online at cspbears.com/tickets prior to game day. All ticketed events for the 25-26 academic year will utilize the Vivenu online ticket platform found at that link and fans must scan a mobile ticket to enter. Tickets will still be sold on site on game day, but purchases are card-only and include additional fees. The best way for fans to make their game day entry as smooth as possible is to purchase tickets online in advance. CSP students, faculty and staff will be able to download and transfer their free passes through Vivenu.

THE NOLD STANDARD: SOPHOMORE STANDOUT CLAIMS ANOTHER WEEKLY HONOR
Concordia sophomore Makenna Nold brought home her second weekly conference award of the season following her dominant performances over the weekend, earning NSIC Offensive Player of the Week honors after leading the league in both kills per set (4.83) and points per set (5.83). For the week, she hit .373 with 29 kills, 17 digs, four aces, and four blocks to lead the Golden Bears to a pair of sweeps including a key victory over No. 9 Wayne State (Neb.). Nold was previously named NSIC Defensive Player of the Week in week three.

IN THE POLLS
Following the weekend sweeps of both Augustana and Wayne State, the Golden Bears climbed three spots to eighth in the sixth American Volleyball Coaches Association Division II Poll of the season. The top 10 ranking is Concordia's first of the 2025 season and the first since the November 25, 2024 poll.

The Golden Bears collected 796 points in the poll, coming in 36 points ahead of No. 9 Washburn and 70 points behind No. 7 Simon Fraser.  The University of Tampa vaulted into the top spot with 1,164 points as the Spartans hold a perfect 12-0 record.

CSP is one of seven Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference representatives in the poll with St. Cloud State (10), Wayne State (11), Minnesota Duluth (13), Southwest Minnesota State (17), and Northern State (23) returning to the top 25 while Minnesota State (22) earned its first ranking of the season.

Concordia has been a mainstay near the top of the poll for nearly two decades as they have ranked outside the top 10 for just 12 weeks since 2003, never ranking below #15. The Golden Bears have ranked #1 at least once in 16 of the past 20 seasons. In total, CSP has spent an incredible 84 weeks at the top team in the country since debuting there in the 2004 preseason poll.

LAST TIME OUT
The Golden Bears retained their flawless conference record after another 2-0 weekend last week as they defeated both Augustana and No. 9 Wayne State in straight sets at the Gangelhoff Center.

Named NSIC Offensive Player of the Week for her efforts in the matches, sophomore Makenna Nold was outstanding as she led the league in both kills per set and points per set for the week. She racked up a total of 29 kills, 17 digs, four aces, and four blocks while hitting .373 in leading the Bears to a pair of victories.

Sophomore Kelsey Cooper had one of her strongest weeks thus far for the Golden Bears, leading the NSIC in blocks per set (1.50) while adding 13 kills and four digs across the two matches.

Senior Ellie Sieling was a key factor on both offense and defense, leading the team with 30 digs (5.00 per set) over the weekend while also contributing 11 kills.

STAT SHEET STANDOUTS
Reigning NSIC Offensive Player of the Week Makenna Nold continues to retain her spot atop the conference leaderboard in both kills per set (4.19) and points per set (5.22) with both marks ranking in the top 14 in all of Division II. The sophomore also sits third in the league in aces per set (0.54).  

Sophomore transfer Kelsey Cooper remains CSP's most efficient attacker, leading the team and ranking fifth in the conference and 12^th in all of Division II with a .398 hitting percentage while tallying 92 kills on the season. Cooper also ranks top five in the conference with 0.95 blocks per set this season after averaging 1.50 per set in last week's matches.

Defensively, senior libero Cassie Sieling leads the team with 3.65 digs per set, ninth most in the NSIC. Senior Ellie Sieling has been a key two-way player for the Golden Bears, ranking second on the team and 12^th in the conference with 3.33 digs per set while averaging 2.56 kills per set, the third best mark on the team.

Sophomore Reagan Hickey has paced the Golden Bear offense with an average of 8.30 assists per set, good for eighth most in the league. Redshirt freshman Audrey Waterman has also played significant time at setter, averaging 6.50 assists per set.
 
Junior Mehlayna Straub ranks eighth in the conference with 0.91 blocks per set while also contributing 2.85 kills per set.

As a team, the Golden Bears lead the NSIC in several key categories including points per set (18.67), hitting percentage (.294), and assists per set (13.58) while ranking second in the league in kills per set (14.52), blocks per set (2.15), opponent hitting percentage (.156), opponent kills (10.83), and opponent assists (10.17).
 
SOUTHWEST MINNESOTA STATE SERIES HISTORY
Friday will mark the 73^rd all-time meeting between CSP and SMSU with Concordia holding a 44-27-1 record in those matches. In the Division II era (1999-present), the Golden Bears have gone 44-15 head-to-head with the Mustangs.

In the last 10 matchups between CSP and SMSU, the Golden Bears have gone 8–2 and enter the weekend riding a five-game winning streak over the Mustangs. In 26 meetings in Marshall, Minn., Concordia holds a 16-10 edge.

SCOUTING THE MUSTANGS
The Mustangs enter Friday's meeting with an overall record of 10-4 while posting a 3-4 mark in conference play. SMSU fell five spots in the most recent AVCA Coaches Poll after going 0-2 last week with a pair of five-set losses to then No. 13 St. Cloud State and Minnesota State.

SMSU setter Sydney Thein has been one of the best in the league so far this season, ranking third in the NSIC with 11.36 assists per set. Junior Leah Jones has been the top offensive option for the Mustangs, sitting fourth in the NSIC with 3.82 kills per set and fifth in the league in points per set (4.22).

Offensively, the Mustangs rank sixth in the conference in points per set (17.64), fourth in kills per set (14.13), and eighth in hitting percentage (.254).

On defense, SMSU leads the league in digs per set with 17.20 and comes in at fifth in the NSIC in blocks per set (2.07).

SIOUX FALLS SERIES HISTORY
Prior to Saturday, the Golden Bears and Cougars have met 18 times with Concordia holding a 15-3 advantage in the series.

Concordia has claimed seven of the last 10 matchups and enters the weekend riding a three-match winning streak over the Cougars. The two teams met just once last season, with Concordia downing USF in straight sets on October 8.

SCOUTING THE COUGARS
The Cougars enter the weekend holding a record of 9-6 with a 4-3 mark in conference play. In five matchups against ranked opponents so far this season, the Cougars have posted a record of 1-4 with a win over No. 8 Southwest Minnesota State and losses to No. 6 MSU Denver, No. 8 Nebraska Kearney, No. 24 Minnesota Duluth, and No. 13 St. Cloud State.  

Defense at the net has been USF's strongest attribute as a team so far this season as the Cougars rank third in the NSIC with 2.09 blocks per set. In the back row, Sioux Falls ranks 14^th in the NSIC with 13.82 digs.

On offense, the Cougars rank 10^th in the NSIC with 12.77 kills per set while sitting fourth in the conference with a .272 hitting percentage.

Middle blocker Haley Wolfe has led the defensive effort at the net for USF with 1.04 blocks per set, the fourth best mark in the league.