ST. PAUL, Minn. – The No. 5 Concordia-St. Paul volleyball team (10-3, 5-1 NSIC) is set for a busy week of action at the Gangelhoff Center as they will host Minnesota State (4-10, 2-4 NSIC) on Tuesday, No. 19 Minnesota Duluth (13-1, 6-0 NSIC) on Friday, and Bemidji State (11-3, 3-3 NSIC) on Saturday.

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 CONFERENCE MATCHES ONLINE - NSIC NETWORK
Starting with the 2026-27 season, Concordia and the NSIC will call Midco Sports Plus the streaming home for the NSIC Network. Midco Sports Plus, a regional cable provider primarily based in North Dakota, South Dakota, and parts of Minnesota, features an expanded variety of online sports coverage.
 
The NSIC Network will be part of a subscription service with annual access plans starting at under $7 per month for the full year ($79/year) or a monthly service for $15, which includes NSIC coverage as well as Summit League coverage.
 
Concordia's home broadcasts will continue to feature multiple cameras with instant replay, along with commentary from St. Paul-native Dan Flanagan, a graduate of Fordham University (N.Y.), where he covered multiple NCAA Division I sports teams on campus for the Rams, including football and basketball in the Patriot League. Flanagan has been the broadcast voice of the Golden Bears for nearly 20 years and called multiple national, regional, and conference championships.
 
For more information, view the NSIC's press release announcing the Midco Sports Plus partnership: https://cspbears.com/news/2026/7/16/athletics-midco-sports-launches-nsics-new-streaming-home.aspx
 
For streaming support and troubleshooting, visit Midco's support page: https://sports.midco.com/support

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 2026-27 academic year will utilize the Vivenu online ticket platform found at that link, and fans must scan a mobile tick et 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 their free passes through Vivenu.

IN THE POLLS
For the fourth consecutive week,  the Golden Bears remained at No. 5 in the sixth American Volleyball Coaches Association Division II Poll of the season.

The Golden Bears collected 950 points in the poll, coming in behind only Ferris State (1,173 points), NSIC foe Wayne State (1,116 points), Tampa (1,069 points), and Fresno Pacific (1,034 points).

The NSIC has five representatives in the poll, with Southwest Minnesota State (#11), St. Cloud State (#15), and Minnesota Duluth (#19) joining CSP and Wayne State.

Concordia has been a mainstay near the top of the poll for more than two decades, as it has ranked outside the top 10 for just eight weeks since 2003, never ranking below #15. The Golden Bears have ranked #1 at least once in 17 of the past 21 seasons. In total, CSP has spent an incredible 84 weeks as the top team in the country since debuting there in the 2004 preseason poll.

STARKEY LOGS 700^th WIN
Head Coach Brady Starkey reached a major milestone in Concordia's win over No. 13 St. Cloud State last weekend, as he now holds a 700-100 record at Concordia. Starkey, who leads all DII head coaches with an .875 winning percentage (minimum five seasons), is just the 28th coach in Division II volleyball history to reach 700 wins.

LAST TIME OUT
Last weekend, the Golden Bears recorded a pair of wins with a road sweep at Winona State and a five-set victory over No. 13 St. Cloud State.

In the win over Winona State, senior Mehlayna Straub carried much of the load offensively, pacing the team with 11 kills on a .524 hitting percentage. Straub also led the defensive effort at the net with a team-high five total blocks.

Julia Gordon, Makenna Nold, and Kaelyn Snoozy finished with eight kills each, with Nold adding 11 digs and four blocks, and Snoozy chipping in eight digs.

Freshman Abby Rolbiecki anchored the back row with a team-leading 12 digs.

At setter, Reagan Hickey tallied 17 assists, and Audrey Waterman added 15.

For the match, CSP hit .351 with 40 kills and limited the Warriors to a .165 clip with 31 kills. The service line provided a significant edge for the Bears as they tallied 10 aces to WSU's two. Concordia also led in assists (39-29), blocks (8-4), and digs (42-34).

On Saturday, Concordia battled back from a 2-1 deficit to defeat No. 13 St. Cloud State at the Gangelhoff Center.

Concordia secured a comfortable 25-17 win in the opening set, but the Huskies bounced back with back-to-back set wins to take a 2-1 lead in the match. The Golden Bears evened the match with a 25-22 win in set four and finished strong with a 15-10 win in set five.

Junior Makenna Nold led all players in the match with 20 kills, also contributing eight digs and four block assists for a total of 23 points.

Sophomore Kaelyn Snoozy logged her fifth double-double of the season with a 14-kill, 13-dig effort, also chipping in three blocks and an ace. Junior Kelsey Cooper was just behind her with 13 kills on a match-high .367 hitting.

Julia Gordon and Mehlayna Straub added nine kills each, with Straub also coming through defensively with a match-high seven total blocks.

Freshman Abby Rolbiecki led the Golden Bears with 20 digs, crossing the 20-dig threshold for the first time in her young career. Concordia's two liberos, Josie Tingelhoff and Marta Leeland, added 14 and 12 digs, respectively.

At setter, Audrey Waterman logged her second-highest assist total of the season with 31, also contributing five digs. Reagan Hickey added 28 assists and four digs.

STAT SHEET STANDOUTS
Junior Makenna Nold paces the NSIC and ranks 11th in Division II with 4.72 points per set. Nold also ranks second in the conference in kills per set (3.77) and sits sixth in aces per set (0.47) and 14^th in blocks per set (0.83).

Junior Kelsey Cooper leads the team and ranks ninth in the NSIC with a .352 hitting percentage. Cooper also sits 18^th in the conference with 0.77 blocks per set.

At setter, Audrey Waterman ranks 12^th in the NSIC with 6.25 assists per set, while Reagan Hickey sits close behind with 6.22 assists per set, good for 13^th in the conference.

As a team, the Golden Bears rank third in the NSIC with 2.17 blocks per set. Concordia also ranks sixth in the conference in assists per set (13.15), fifth in kills per set (13.87), and eighth in digs per set (15.89).

MINNESOTA STATE SERIES HISTORY
The Golden Bears and Mavericks have met a total of 42 times in prior seasons, with CSP going 38-4 in those matches. When playing at home, Concordia holds a perfect 20-0 record against Minnesota State.

The Golden Bears have won 20 straight against the Mavericks in a streak that dates back to 2014. 12 of the 20 wins have come via sweeps. In the lone meeting between the teams last season, CSP defeated MSU in straight sets.

SCOUTING THE MAVERICKS
The Mavericks enter the week holding an overall record of 4-10, including a mark of 2-4 in NSIC play.

The service line has been a strength for MSU, as they rank fourth in the NSIC with 1.86 aces per set. On offense, the Mavericks sit 13^th in the conference with an average of 11.41 kills per set.

Individually, junior setter Jadyn Lester ranks second in the conference with 0.53 aces per set. Lester also sits seventh in the NSIC with 8.84 assists per set. MSU features a balanced offensive approach, with Addison Foor, Lily Riese, Avery Rosenburg, and Emily Clausen each averaging between 2.00 and 2.50 kills per set.
 
MINNESOTA DULUTH SERIES HISTORY
The Golden Bears and Bulldogs have played each other 68 times in previous seasons, with Concordia holding a 38-30 edge in the series. When playing at home, Concordia has gone 18-15 against UMD.

The Golden Bears have dominated the series in recent years, winning 12 straight over UMD since 2019. The teams played twice in the span of four days last season, as Concordia wrapped up the regular season with a five-set win over the Bulldogs and followed it up with a four-set win over UMD in the first round of the NSIC Tournament.

SCOUTING THE BULLDOGS
Ranked 19^th in the most recent AVCA Coaches Poll, the Bulldogs begin the week with a 13-1 overall record, including a perfect 6-0 mark in conference play.

The Bulldogs boast a high-powered offense that leads the NSIC with 14.85 kills per set and ranks second with 1.96 aces per set. On defense, UMD sits seventh in blocks per set (1.92) and 12^th in digs per set (14.67).
Sophomore Brietta Tims leads the NSIC with 0.54 aces per set. Madeline Guetzkow ranks fourth in kills per set with 3.67, while Paige Decker paces the conference with a .433 hitting percentage.

BEMIDJI STATE SERIES HISTORY
Saturday will mark the 50^th edition of the series between the Golden Bears and Beavers, with CSP holding a dominant 40-8-1 head-to-head mark. In the Division II era, Concordia has posted a record of 40-4 against Bemidji State.

Concordia has won every meeting since 2002, taking the last 38 straight over BSU. When the teams met on November 14 last season in Bemidji, CSP came away with a win in straight sets.

SCOUTING THE BEAVERS
Bemidji State enters the week with a record of 11-3, including a mark of 3-3 in conference play.

The Beavers lead the NSIC as a team with 2.12 aces per set, and rank seventh with 13.73 kills per set. On defense, BSU sits 11^th with 14.78 digs per set and 15^th with 1.45 blocks per set.

Nevaeh Carlson leads the offense with 3.65 kills per set, good for fifth in the conference. Libero Ava Boelter ranks fourth in the NSIC with 4.20 digs per set. Setter Madison Tripp ranks fourth in the conference with 10.63 assists per set.