Friday, September 8
Fargo, N.D.
12 p.m.
North Dakota State Athletics
vs
Portland State
Photo by: Zachary Lucy
Bison Volleyball Set to Host NDSU Tournament
9/6/2023 8:06:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
THIS WEEK
The North Dakota State (4-2) volleyball team is prepared to make its home debut hosting Portland State (4-3) at 12:00 p.m., and Toledo (2-4) at 7:00 p.m., on Friday at Bentson Bunker Fieldhouse. Portland State and Toledo will conclude the NDSU Tournament with a neutral site match on Saturday at 10:00 a.m.
MATCH COVERAGE
All three matches will feature lives statistics. Live video will also be available on the Summit League Network for all matches with the exception of Toledo and Portland State on Saturday.
TICKETS
General admission tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for youth ages 3-17, and reserved tickets are $10-12. Match day tickets are sold at the Bentson Bunker Fieldhouse and are also available at GoBison.com/tickets. Doors open one (1) hour prior to the match. Free parking is available in Visitors Lot E.
LAST TIME OUT
NDSU fell short against Ohio, 3-1, last Saturday at the Dayton Flyer Classic in Dayton, Ohio after the Bobcats won the final three sets. Alexis Boling paced the Bison with a team-high 14 kills, while Morgan Middleton added in 11 kills with a .296 hitting percentage. Kelley Johnson contributed a team-best 33 assists with eight digs and Logan O'Brien notched a team-high 14 digs on the defensive end.
BISON IN HOME OPENERS
Dating back to 2017, NDSU is 4-2 in home openers. Last season, the Bison edged Chicago State, 3-2, in day one of the NDSU Tournament. Kelley Johnson logged a career-high 58 assists and career-best 25 digs, while Ali Hinze posted 16 kills and 13 digs.
BOLING LANDS ON DAYTON FLYER CLASSIC ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM
Alexis Boling earned a spot on the Dayton Flyer Classic All-Tournament Team last week after totaling 39 kills to go along with a .299 hitting percentage. It marked her second straight All-Tournament selection this season after also being named to the Vandal Volleyball Invitational All-Tournament team joining Kelley Johnson and Ali Hinze to open the season.
SUMMIT LEAGUE PEAK PERFORMER OF THE WEEK
Ali Hinze was named the Summit League Offensive Peak Performer of the Week on Aug. 29. She totaled a team-high 40 kills and added 37 digs on the defensive side at the Vandal Volleyball Invitational. Hinze averaged a team-best 3.33 kills per set and reached double figures in kills in all three matches.
SUMMIT LEAGUE PRESEASON POLL
NDSU earned its highest Summit League Preseason Coaches' Poll ranking since 2016 after being picked second. The Bison garnered 54 total points and two first place votes to secure the second spot. South Dakota was selected first with 61 points and six first place votes, while Omaha closed out the top three with 53 points and one first place vote.
SUMMIT LEAGUE PLAYERS TO WATCH
Senior outside hitter Ali Hinze and senior setter Kelley Johnson were selected to the Summit League Players to Watch list. Johnson, who was named the Summit League Setter of the Year last season, paced the conference and ranked eighth in the nation with a career-best 1,342 assists. Hinze picked up All-Summit League First Team honors last season after powering the Bison with a career-best 446 kills. The Maple Grove, Minn., native averaged a team-high 3.63 kills per set, which ranked fifth in the Summit League.
LOOKING BACK AT THE 2022 SEASON
The Bison finished last season reaching the 20-win mark for only the fifth time in the Division I era with a 21-12 (13-5 Summit) overall record and advanced to the Summit League Championship
semifinal round for the first time since 2018. NDSU closed the season making its first appearance in the National Invitational Volleyball Championship (NIVC).
The Bison featured one of the most high-powered offenses in the country after totaling 1,759 kills, which paced the Summit League and ranked seventh in the nation. NDSU also led the conference and ranked 10th in the nation in total assists with 1,615.
PLENTY OF DEPTH IN THE LINEUP
NDSU returns nine starters this season, including five seniors: Ava Schmoll, Taylor Quan, Ali Hinze, Alex Lyle and Kelley Johnson. Schmoll and Johnson provide the most experience on the roster and are both entering their fifth seasons at NDSU. Schmoll has appeared in a team-high 96 career matches, while Johnson has also reached the 90-match plateau with 95.
YOUNG BISON
The Bison added three newcomers roster after Arianna Blohm, Emma Tallman and Lauren Jansen signed last November. Ally Barth, who was named to the All-Summit League Freshman Team last season, and Baily Randall are the only other underclassman on the roster and will each be entering their sophomore seasons.
JOHNSON REACHES 3,000
Kelley Johnson handed out a career-high 1,342 assists last season and currently ranks 10th all-time in Bison history with 3,099 career assists. She's one of four players to reach the 3,000 career assists mark in the NDSU Division I era.
HINZE HITS 1K KILLS
Ali Hinze has surpassed the 1,000 kills mark with 1,133 over her first four seasons. She's one of nine players to reach the mark in the NDSU Division I era.
THIS IS OUR HOUSE
The Bison have called Bentson Bunker Fieldhouse home since 1978 and have notched a 403-104 overall record at home during that span. NDSU picked up its 400th win at the BBF after sweeping Kansas City, 3-0, on Oct. 1, 2022.
TAKIN' CARE OF BUSINESS IN THE CLASSROOM
NDSU earned the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Team Academic Award for the 11th straight year in 2022-23. The Bison also earned a spot on the AVCA Team Academic Honor Roll with a team GPA in the top 20 percent of NCAA Division I. NDSU boasted a 3.74 cumulative GPA last season.
THE SERIES AGAINST PORTLAND STATE
This will be 15th all-time meeting between Portland State and NDSU dating back to 1983 with the Vikings holding the edge in the series, 10-4. The Bison have lost each of the last three meetings in the series, including falling short, 3-2, at the Portland State Tournament in 2021. Kelley Johnson notched a double-double with 43 assists and 12 digs, while Ali Hinze contributed 19 kills and 11 digs.
THE SERIES AGAINST TOLEDO
This will be only the second meeting between NDSU and Toledo with the Bison leading the series, 1-0. In their only encounter in 2019, the Bison cruised past the Rockets, 3-0, at the Blue & Gold Tournament in Toledo, Ohio. Kelley Johnson made her collegiate debut and notched 17 assists with 10 digs.
LOOKING AHEAD
NDSU will be back in action at the Mountaineer Invitational in Morgantown, W. Va., against Robert Morris on Thursday, Sept. 14. First serve is set for 11:30 a.m. CT
The North Dakota State (4-2) volleyball team is prepared to make its home debut hosting Portland State (4-3) at 12:00 p.m., and Toledo (2-4) at 7:00 p.m., on Friday at Bentson Bunker Fieldhouse. Portland State and Toledo will conclude the NDSU Tournament with a neutral site match on Saturday at 10:00 a.m.
MATCH COVERAGE
All three matches will feature lives statistics. Live video will also be available on the Summit League Network for all matches with the exception of Toledo and Portland State on Saturday.
TICKETS
General admission tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for youth ages 3-17, and reserved tickets are $10-12. Match day tickets are sold at the Bentson Bunker Fieldhouse and are also available at GoBison.com/tickets. Doors open one (1) hour prior to the match. Free parking is available in Visitors Lot E.
LAST TIME OUT
NDSU fell short against Ohio, 3-1, last Saturday at the Dayton Flyer Classic in Dayton, Ohio after the Bobcats won the final three sets. Alexis Boling paced the Bison with a team-high 14 kills, while Morgan Middleton added in 11 kills with a .296 hitting percentage. Kelley Johnson contributed a team-best 33 assists with eight digs and Logan O'Brien notched a team-high 14 digs on the defensive end.
BISON IN HOME OPENERS
Dating back to 2017, NDSU is 4-2 in home openers. Last season, the Bison edged Chicago State, 3-2, in day one of the NDSU Tournament. Kelley Johnson logged a career-high 58 assists and career-best 25 digs, while Ali Hinze posted 16 kills and 13 digs.
BOLING LANDS ON DAYTON FLYER CLASSIC ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM
Alexis Boling earned a spot on the Dayton Flyer Classic All-Tournament Team last week after totaling 39 kills to go along with a .299 hitting percentage. It marked her second straight All-Tournament selection this season after also being named to the Vandal Volleyball Invitational All-Tournament team joining Kelley Johnson and Ali Hinze to open the season.
SUMMIT LEAGUE PEAK PERFORMER OF THE WEEK
Ali Hinze was named the Summit League Offensive Peak Performer of the Week on Aug. 29. She totaled a team-high 40 kills and added 37 digs on the defensive side at the Vandal Volleyball Invitational. Hinze averaged a team-best 3.33 kills per set and reached double figures in kills in all three matches.
SUMMIT LEAGUE PRESEASON POLL
NDSU earned its highest Summit League Preseason Coaches' Poll ranking since 2016 after being picked second. The Bison garnered 54 total points and two first place votes to secure the second spot. South Dakota was selected first with 61 points and six first place votes, while Omaha closed out the top three with 53 points and one first place vote.
SUMMIT LEAGUE PLAYERS TO WATCH
Senior outside hitter Ali Hinze and senior setter Kelley Johnson were selected to the Summit League Players to Watch list. Johnson, who was named the Summit League Setter of the Year last season, paced the conference and ranked eighth in the nation with a career-best 1,342 assists. Hinze picked up All-Summit League First Team honors last season after powering the Bison with a career-best 446 kills. The Maple Grove, Minn., native averaged a team-high 3.63 kills per set, which ranked fifth in the Summit League.
LOOKING BACK AT THE 2022 SEASON
The Bison finished last season reaching the 20-win mark for only the fifth time in the Division I era with a 21-12 (13-5 Summit) overall record and advanced to the Summit League Championship
semifinal round for the first time since 2018. NDSU closed the season making its first appearance in the National Invitational Volleyball Championship (NIVC).
The Bison featured one of the most high-powered offenses in the country after totaling 1,759 kills, which paced the Summit League and ranked seventh in the nation. NDSU also led the conference and ranked 10th in the nation in total assists with 1,615.
PLENTY OF DEPTH IN THE LINEUP
NDSU returns nine starters this season, including five seniors: Ava Schmoll, Taylor Quan, Ali Hinze, Alex Lyle and Kelley Johnson. Schmoll and Johnson provide the most experience on the roster and are both entering their fifth seasons at NDSU. Schmoll has appeared in a team-high 96 career matches, while Johnson has also reached the 90-match plateau with 95.
YOUNG BISON
The Bison added three newcomers roster after Arianna Blohm, Emma Tallman and Lauren Jansen signed last November. Ally Barth, who was named to the All-Summit League Freshman Team last season, and Baily Randall are the only other underclassman on the roster and will each be entering their sophomore seasons.
JOHNSON REACHES 3,000
Kelley Johnson handed out a career-high 1,342 assists last season and currently ranks 10th all-time in Bison history with 3,099 career assists. She's one of four players to reach the 3,000 career assists mark in the NDSU Division I era.
HINZE HITS 1K KILLS
Ali Hinze has surpassed the 1,000 kills mark with 1,133 over her first four seasons. She's one of nine players to reach the mark in the NDSU Division I era.
THIS IS OUR HOUSE
The Bison have called Bentson Bunker Fieldhouse home since 1978 and have notched a 403-104 overall record at home during that span. NDSU picked up its 400th win at the BBF after sweeping Kansas City, 3-0, on Oct. 1, 2022.
TAKIN' CARE OF BUSINESS IN THE CLASSROOM
NDSU earned the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Team Academic Award for the 11th straight year in 2022-23. The Bison also earned a spot on the AVCA Team Academic Honor Roll with a team GPA in the top 20 percent of NCAA Division I. NDSU boasted a 3.74 cumulative GPA last season.
THE SERIES AGAINST PORTLAND STATE
This will be 15th all-time meeting between Portland State and NDSU dating back to 1983 with the Vikings holding the edge in the series, 10-4. The Bison have lost each of the last three meetings in the series, including falling short, 3-2, at the Portland State Tournament in 2021. Kelley Johnson notched a double-double with 43 assists and 12 digs, while Ali Hinze contributed 19 kills and 11 digs.
THE SERIES AGAINST TOLEDO
This will be only the second meeting between NDSU and Toledo with the Bison leading the series, 1-0. In their only encounter in 2019, the Bison cruised past the Rockets, 3-0, at the Blue & Gold Tournament in Toledo, Ohio. Kelley Johnson made her collegiate debut and notched 17 assists with 10 digs.
LOOKING AHEAD
NDSU will be back in action at the Mountaineer Invitational in Morgantown, W. Va., against Robert Morris on Thursday, Sept. 14. First serve is set for 11:30 a.m. CT
Players Mentioned
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/ Women's Volleyball
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/ Women's Volleyball
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/ Women's Volleyball
OH
/ Women's Volleyball
OH
/ Women's Volleyball
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/ Women's Volleyball
OH
/ Women's Volleyball
OH
/ Women's Volleyball
DS
/ Women's Volleyball
DS/L
/ Women's Volleyball
OH
/ Women's Volleyball
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/ Women's Volleyball
MB
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