THURSDAY IN PEACOCK VOLLEYBALL… The No. 22 Upper Iowa volleyball team plays their first of three Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference matches scheduled in a span of just five days. Coming off a pair of home sweeps last weekend, the Peacocks are looking to continue their success against their travel partner Winona State University, who was ranked No. 16 in the latest American Volleyball Coaches Association Top-25 poll. The match is slated for 6 p.m. on Prochaska Court.
LIVE OPTIONS… Live stats and webcast will be available for Thursday night's matchup through the links at UIUPeacocks.com/Live or the game can be streamed live on the Stretch Internet App for fans with Roku, Amazon Fire, Apple or Android televisions. In addition, the match can be broadcast live on KCRG-TV 9.2.
DORMAN IN DISGUISE… In celebration of Halloween night, fans and students are encouraged to wear costumes to the game for a chance to win one of three prizes awarded to the best dressed. Fans in attendance can also enter into a Perfect Serve competition where one lucky fan will have the opportunity to serve their way to a $250 prize in between the second and third sets.
NSIC TOURNAMENT WATCH… UIU enters the weekend in a three-way tie with Augustana University and No. 15 Southwest Minnesota State University for 8th place in conference standings. The three teams are one game ahead of University of Sioux Falls, one game behind (RV) Minnesota State University-Mankato, and just two games behind another three-way tie between No. 12 Wayne State College, No. 11 St. Cloud State University, and No. 16 Winona State for 4th place. With just seven regular season matches left this year, each squad is fighting for their place and seed in the elite NSIC Tournament that only includes the top-8 teams.
SCOUTING WINONA STATE… The Warriors (17-4, 9-4 NSIC) are currently on a three-game winning streak and have won nine of their last 11 matches with three victories coming over nationally-ranked opponents. WSU is led offensively by Megan Flom who is swinging at a NSIC-best .408 clip (7th in NCAA DII) and averages 3.98 kills per set (7th in NSIC). The junior middle blocker has cranked up her play in October as she has been named NSIC Offensive Player of the Week twice and owns a blistering .502 attacking percentage this month. Bre Maloney averages 10.61 assists per set (4th in NSIC) to pace the Warrior attack that ranks fourth in the NSIC in team hitting percentage (.268). Becca Pagel leads the team with 4.34 digs per set (7th in NSIC), while Madison Rizner patrols the net with 83 total blocks (1.08/set).
LAST TIME THEY MET… Upper Iowa won the teams' first matchup last year with a 3-1 decision, which ended Winona State's five-game win streak dating back to 2015, and then swept the Warriors in Fayette in the second clash of the 2018 season. The Peacocks held the Warriors to under a .100 hitting efficiency in both matches while hitting .266 and .282, respectively, and averaging 14.0 kills each game. Anna Winter led the offense on both occasions with a total of 37 kills and Haley Weepie paced the defense with 43 digs, including 30 in Winona.
UP NEXT… The Peacocks will hit the road to face No. 6 Concordia University, St. Paul on Saturday at 5 p.m. and (RV) Minnesota State University-Mankato on Monday at 6 p.m.
