ST. PAUL, Minn. – The No. 9 Concordia-St. Paul volleyball team (19-4, 15-1 NSIC) will host its final three home matches of the regular season this week, playing No. 10 St. Cloud State (19-5) in a non-conference match on Tuesday before hosting Minnesota Crookston (6-18, 0-16 NSIC) and MSU Moorhead (13-11, 7-9 NSIC) in a pair of conference contests over the weekend.
 
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.

IN THE POLLS
Following a 2-0 week that saw CSP sweep Northern State and Jamestown, the Golden Bears remained at No. 9 in the 10th American Volleyball Coaches Association Division II Poll of the season.

The Golden Bears collected 835 points in the poll, coming in 101 points ahead of No. 10 St. Cloud State and just seven points behind No. 8 Simon Fraser.  The University of Tampa remained in the top spot with 1,175 points and all 47 first-place votes as the Spartans hold a perfect 21-0 record.

CSP is one of seven Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference representatives in the poll, with Wayne State (5), St. Cloud State (10), Southwest Minnesota State (16), Northern State (22), Minnesota State (24), and Minnesota Duluth (25) each remaining in the top 25.

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.

SENIOR SEND-OFF
Saturday's match against MSU Moorhead will mark the final regular season home match in the careers of three CSP seniors, with Natalee Rolbiecki, Cassie Sieling, and Ellie Sieling all set to be recognized on senior day.

After transferring to CSP ahead of the 2024 season, Rolbiecki has tallied 376 digs, 23 aces, and 22 assists for the Golden Bears. Including her two seasons at Southwest Minnesota State, Rolbiecki has logged a total of 951 digs in her collegiate career.

With 1,420 digs in her Concordia career to this point, Ellie Sieling currently ranks 11^th in school history, needing just four more digs to move into the top 10. Sieling has been a key asset at the service line for CSP, tallying 155 service aces throughout her career, third-most in school history. She has also contributed on offense, logging 363 career kills.

Cassie Sieling has logged 1,081 career digs, 173 set assists, and 106 service aces in her four years at CSP. She became the 24^th member of Concordia's 1,000 dig club earlier this season and currently ranks 22^nd in school history in the category.

LAST TIME OUT
Last week, the Golden Bears went 2-0 with road sweeps of both No. 22 Northern State and Jamestown. The wins extended Concordia's active winning streak to eight matches, with all eight being sweeps.

Sophomore Makenna Nold had a strong week in leading the CSP offense, averaging 4.67 kills per set on a .317 hitting percentage while leading the conference in points per set with 5.58.

Senior libero Cassie Sieling anchored the CSP defense in the wins, averaging 5.0 per set with 12 against Northern State and 17 against Jamestown.

Freshman Kaelyn Snoozy had nine kills for CSP in both matches and senior Ellie Sieling logged eight kills in each win with 17 digs against Jamestown and 11 against Northern State.

STAT SHEET STANDOUTS
Makenna Nold remains atop the conference leaderboard in both kills per set (4.38) and points per set (5.34) with both marks ranking in the top 12 in all of Division II. The sophomore also sits third in the league in aces per set (0.48).  

Sophomore Kelsey Cooper has been CSP's most efficient attacker, leading the team and ranking seventh in the conference with a .355 hitting percentage while tallying 144 kills on the season. Cooper also ranks seventh in the conference with 0.93 blocks per set this season.

Defensively, senior libero Cassie Sieling leads the team with 4.05 digs per set, eighth-most in the NSIC. Senior Ellie Sieling continues to be a key two-way player for the Golden Bears, ranking second on the team and 12th in the conference with 3.44 digs per set while averaging 2.69 kills per set, the third-best mark on the team.

Sophomore Reagan Hickey has paced the Golden Bear offense with an average of 7.53 assists per set, good for eighth-most in the league. Redshirt freshman Audrey Waterman has also climbed into the top nine in the conference with an average of 6.44 assists per set.
 
Junior Mehlayna Straub ranks 14th in the conference with 0.82 blocks per set while also contributing 2.79 kills per set.

As a team, the Golden Bears lead the NSIC in several key categories, including points per set (18.82), hitting percentage (.294), and assists per set (13.71), while ranking second in kills per set (14.71), opponent hitting percentage (.153), and opponent kills per set (10.88).
 
ST. CLOUD STATE SERIES HISTORY
Tuesday will mark the 44^th all-time meeting between the Golden Bears and Huskies, with CSP holding a 35-8 advantage to this point. At the Gangelhoff Center, Concordia has posted a record of 14-2 against the Huskies.

When the two teams met earlier this season in a conference match in St. Cloud, Minn., the Golden Bears came away with a three-set win by scores of 25-22, 25-22, and 25-21.

SCOUTING THE HUSKIES
The Huskies enter Tuesday's meeting with an overall record of 19-5, including a 14-2 record in conference play.

The Huskies feature a potent offense that ranks only behind the Golden Bears in kills per set (18.81) and assists per set (13.68) among conference competitors while sitting sixth in hitting percentage (.265).

SCSU setter Braya LaPlante has been one of the best in the NSIC this season, ranking third with 11.49 assists per set. On offense, Shelby Kimm leads the way for the Huskies with 3.38 kills per set, the eighth-best mark in the conference.
 
MINNESOTA CROOKSTON SERIES HISTORY
The Golden Bears hold a 39-3 all-time record against the Golden Eagles, with each of the three losses coming in the first three meetings spanning from 1996-1999. Since then, Concordia has won 39 straight over UMC heading into Friday's meeting. At the Gangelhoff Center, CSP holds a 20-1 edge all-time in the series.

SCOUTING THE GOLDEN EAGLES
The Golden Eagles have posted a record of 6-18 so far this season, including a record of 0-16 in conference play. 

Minnesota Crookston's strength lies with its defense, as the Golden Eagles rank fourth in the conference with 16.62 digs per set. Libero Kailee Waasdorp has been the best in the NSIC this season, leading the league and ranking seventh in all of Division II with 5.66 digs per set.

Madison Carsten has also been a key contributor on offense as she sits second in the conference behind only Nold with 3.88 kills per set, while ranking fourth with 4.22 points per set.

MSU MOORHEAD SERIES HISTORY
The Golden Bears hold a 37-8 advantage in the all-time series against the Dragons, including a 19-3 mark at the Gangelhoff Center. CSP has won 22 straight over MSU Moorhead heading into this weekend, with the Dragons' last win over CSP coming in 2007.

SCOUTING THE DRAGONS
MSU Moorhead enters the week with an overall record of 13-11 and a 7-9 mark in NSIC play. 

As a team, the Dragons sit near the middle of the pack in the conference in many statistical categories, ranking ninth in both kills per set (12.72) and blocks per set (1.87) while sitting 10^th in hitting percentage (.226).

Raiah Mandell has led the way for the MSU Moorhead offense, averaging 2.98 kills per set this season, good for 18^th in the NSIC. On defense, Maci Martini ranks 14^th in the conference with 3.25 digs per set.