Game Time... 12th-ranked Northwestern concludes a three-match road trip when they head to Mitchell, S.D. to play Dakota Wesleyan Wednesday night. First serve at the Christen Family Athletic Center is scheduled for 7:30pm. Northwestern sits in third place in the current GPAC standings with an 8-2 league record, 17-5 overall. Dakota Wesleyan is tied with College of Saint Mary for 10th place in the current standings at 2-8 in the GPAC, 12-10 overall.

Listen live to the game via the KSOU broadcast at this link: Listen Now!  

Follow the game live, via the DWU webcast, at this link: Watch Now! 

All-Time...Northwestern is 34-1 all-time against Dakota Wesleyan (since 1990), including a 3-0 win over the Tigers earlier this season. 

Last Time vs DWU...Lauryn Hilger floored a match-high 21 kills in leading the Red Raiders to a 25-17, 25-14, 29-27 home win over DWU on Sept. 20. Northwestern hit .385 for the match compared to 13% by the Tigers. Josie Blankespoor added 12 kills in 24 attempts while both Bekah Horstman and Emily Van Ginkel totaled three blocks each. Lacey Wacker (51 assists) and Emily Strasser (9 digs) were the other stat leaders.

Scouting Reports...

    Dakota Wesleyan Tigers: 2-8 (T10th), 12-10          Head Coach: Lindsay Wilber - 5th year

DWU has lost two straight and seven of their last eight matches heading into Wednesday night's match-up against the Red Raiders. They lost to both Hastings and Doane last weekend, on the road, by 3-2 and 3-0 scores. The Tigers' wins in GPAC play are against Mount Marty and Concordia and are tied with CSM for 10th place in the current standings.

Wilber is in her fifth season as the Tigers head coach, coming to DWU after a successful stint as both a Club coach and as director of the TIBBS academy. Wilber returns nine of her 10 top players from a 2017 team that finished tied with Concordia for eighth in the GPAC at 3-13, 16-18 overall. 

By the Numbers (Conference Rank / NAIA rank-if top 10)
        Kills/Game: 11.9 (10th)
        Hitting %: .214 (6th)
        Aces: 78 (12th)
        Digs/Set: 19.1 (1st / 8th)
        Blocks/Set: 2.1 (6th)

     Top Players (Conf / NAIA rank-if top 10)
        Rebecca Frick (2nd team all-conference)  4.5 kills/set (2nd / 4th), .240%, 4.0 digs/set (6th), 45 blocks
        Emily Brunsing  1.6 kills/set, .223%, 82 blocks (5th)
        Bridgett Knobbe (HM All-Conference)  9.1 assists/set (6th), 2.0 digs/set, 35 blocks
        Sara Herman (HM All-Conference)  11 aces, 4.8 digs/set (3rd)

    #12 Northwestern College Red Raiders:  8-2 (3rd GPAC), 17-5 overall        Head Coach: Kyle Van Den Bosch (14th year)

Northwestern went 1-1 last week, falling to Morningside in five sets to end a six-match win streak but coming back to defeat College of Saint Mary 3-0 on Saturday. The Red Raiders are third in the current league standings, one game behind Midland, with an 8-2 record, 17-5 overall. They are one of five GPAC teams to be recognized in the latest NAIA Coaches' poll. 

The Red Raiders have had more kills than their opponent in all but one match and have had better hit percentage in 16 of 22 matches played. Lauryn Hilger, the GPAC's leader in kills per set, has floored double figures in 20 of 22 matches. Makenzie Fink is next, hitting for double figures in seven matches, followed closely by Josie Blankespoor with six.

By the Numbers (Conference Rank / NAIA rank-if top 10)
        Kills/Game: 14.2 (1st / 1st)
        Hitting %: .283% (1st / 6th)
        Aces: 138 (1st)
        Digs/Set: 13.8 (11th)
        Blocks/Set: 2.0 (7th)

     Top Players (Conf / NAIA rank-if top 10)
        Lauryn Hilger (3x all-conference)  4.6 kills/set (1st / 3rd), 33 aces (1st), 2.7 digs/set
        Makenzie Fink (All-Conference)  2.6 kills/set, .264%, 26 aces (4th), 1 digs/set
        Emily Van Ginkel  1.8 kills/set, .257%, 54 blocks
        Bekah Horstman  1.6 kills/set, .365%, 68 blocks
        Lacey Wacker (All-Conference / GPAC Freshman of Year)  11.7 assists/set (1st /1st), 19 aces, 2 digs/set
        Emily Strasser  23 aces, 3.8 digs/set (7th)

Up Next..The Red Raiders will host ninth-ranked Midland on Saturday, Oct. 13 at 3pm.