Minnesota State Ends 2009 Campaign 26-7, 16-4 NSIC
12/20/2009 6:01:58 PM
The Season: The Minnesota State volleyball program finished its 2009 volleyball season with a 26-7 overall record and a 16-4 NSIC record.
The Seniors: Minnesota State said goodbye to two seniors this season. Senior right-side hitter Ally Kwikkel and senior defensive specialist Kelly Sandstrom.
Ally Kwikkel (Waverly, Iowa) began her career at Minnesota State in 2005. Over her five years at MSU she has earned 765 kills, a hitting percentage of .255 and 232 blocks in 389 sets played.
Kelly Sandstrom (Andover, Minn.) played four seasons for MSU starting in 2006. Over her four years at Minnesota State, Sandstrom has tallied 77 assists, 89 service aces and 902 digs in 356 sets played.
Maverick Postseason: The Mavericks earned their seventh ever berth into the NCAA Division II tournament this season. MSU was seeded fifth in the Centeral Region.
The fifth seeded Minnesota State volleyball squad traveled to St. Paul, Minn. to take part in the 2009 NCAA Division II Central Region Tournament hosted by #1 seed Concordia University, St. Paul. The Mavericks opened competition against fellow Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference member, #4 Wayne State.
The Mavericks took an early 9-3 lead in the first set of Thursday’s match, but the Wildcats clawed back from a six point deficit to defeat the Mavericks, 25-23. The second set started similar with the Mavericks up 9-6 early. This time MSU finished strong, pulling away to a 25-18 win. Entering the third set with the match evened up at 1-1, Minnesota State jumped out to an early 12-6 lead. Wayne State came back to tie up the set at 19, but the Mavericks turned up the heat late to earn the 25-21 victory. The Mavericks looked to finish off the Wildcats in the fourth, but Wayne State took a lead early in the set and wouldn’t give it up. The Wildcats tied up the match at 2-2 with the 25-20 win.The fifth set began with a fast start by the higher seeded Wildcats, jumping to a quick 4-1 lead. The Mavericks then scored three straight to tie the match up at 4. Minnesota State found themselves down 12-8 after the Wildcats took 6 of the next eight points and defeated the Mavericks, 15-11.
Minnesota State’s attack was led by outside hitters freshman Chelsea Fogarty (Belle Plaine, Minn.) and junior Amanda Beekman (Marshall, Minn.) who earned 19 and 18 kills, respectively. Senior right-side hitter Ally Kwikkel (Waverly, Iowa) made each hit count, earning a team best .346 hitting percentage. Sophomore setter Brittany Stamer (Hutchinson, Minn.) finished with a team best 51 assists. Defensively, the Mavericks were led by defensive specialists, sophomore Alli Rice (Owatonna, Minn.) and freshman Samantha Dale (Alexandria, Minn.) with 25 digs each. Junior middle blocker Amanda Thompson (Stewartville, Minn.) finished the match with eight blocks.
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