University of Minnesota Duluth VOLLEYBALL QUICK FACTS
2014 NSIC Regular Season & Tournament Champions
2014 Record	33-2
Final AVCA National Ranking	3
Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference	20-0
Finish	1
Starters returning	4/2
Letterwinners returning	11/4
Head Coach                                    Jim Boos (14th season)
Overall Record	364-62
NSIC Record	148-23
Top Returners Ashley Hinsch (Sr./S - NSIC Preseason Player of the Year) Mariah Scharf (Sr./OH - AVCA All-America First Team) Monica Turner (Sr./MB - AVCA All-America Third Team) Sydnie Mauch (Jr./MB - AVCA All-American Honorable Mention)
Newcomers Emily Torve (Fr./S - Loretto, Minn./Heritage Christian Academy) Erin Schindler (Fr./OH - Chaska, Minn./Chaska H.S.) Sarah Kelly (Fr./MB - Chaska, Minn./Chaska H.S.)
Season Opener vs Wayne State (Mich) Friday, Sept. 4, 10:00 a.m. ET @ Tampa, Fla.
NSIC & Home Opener vs. Minnesota-Crookston Thursday, Sept. 17, 7:00 p.m.

2015: Schedule | Roster | NSIC Preseason Poll
2014: Results | Statistics

After a 33-2 season and 20-0 mark in Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference regular season play, falling only to the national finalists and returning a quartet of American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) All-American selections including the NSIC Preseason Player of the Year in senior setter Ashley Hinsch, one might assume that the University of Minnesota Duluth's position atop the NSIC would hardly be in question, but not so, at least according to the league Coaches' Poll, released last week with UMD ranked third behind Concordia University, St. Paul and aforementioned NCAA II National Championship runner-up Southwest Minnesota State University.

What may hold the Bulldogs back is who was lost -- the graduation of four seniors included a pair of All-American selections (UMD had six in all) including the most-decorated libero in Bulldog history in Julie Rainey ('14), who accounted for a program-record 2,465 digs in her four-year career and 630 last season in earning the NSIC Defensive Player of the Year award for the second consecutive season. Even still, UMD returns most of their punch on offense and have plenty of reason for optimism that the team will outperform expectations.

WHO'S BACK?
Hinsch leads the way for the Bulldogs, both as the most-highly regarded returner and the leader of their offense. Earning an NSIC Player of the Year and Daktronics Central Region Player of the Year honors in 2014, the setter propelled an offense that knocked down 15.32 kills per game and hit an NSIC-best .289. Hinsch, herself, collected 12.99 assists per game while also improving her defensive game with 2.21 digs per set.

With all that offense to go around, the Bulldogs produced four All-Americans on the front line in 2015: senior outside hitter Mariah Scharf, senior middle blocker Monica Turner, junior middle blocker Sydnie Mauch, and right-side hitter Maddy Siroin ('14). Turner collected 2.76 kills per game while hitting a UMD record .383 on the year, earning her second-straight All-America citation from the AVCA, while Scharf stepped in dutifully on the left side, coming from relative obscurity (playing behind UMD's all-time kills leader Kate Lange in 2013) to becoming an All-American First Team pick in her first year as a starter, smacking a team-high 3.92 kills per set. Mauch, who also earned her first All-America citation as an honorable mention, scored 2.59 kills per game and was the lone Bulldog to eclipse 100.0 total blocks on the season, averaging 0.87 per game though Turner was just behind her at 99.0 which brought her into the top-10 all-time at UMD in that category. The graduation of Siroin should lead to additional playing time for junior outside hitter Taylor Wissbroecker, sophomore middle blocker Allison Olley, and sophomore outside hitter Megan Norby on the front line.

Defensively, the Bulldogs have a big question to answer in the preseason as to who will win the starting libero job. The prime candidates would seem to be senior Sheenagh Caroline, junior Teal Tomaszweski, and sophomore Kelly Madison. Madison appeared in all but one match for UMD during her freshman campaign, showing steady improvement defensively while primarily being used as a serving specialist for the Bulldogs. Tomaszewski appeared in 15 matches, grabbing 1.95 digs per game. Caroline brings the most experience to the table with 63 matches played and a pair of starts a season ago. She averaged a career-best 1.06 digs in 2014. Sophomore setter Sarah Heesacker rounds out the returning line-up after a season backing up Hinsch, appearing in three games during her first go-around with the Bulldogs.

WHO'S NEW?
Head coach Jim Boos and assistant Christyn May filled the holes left to graduation with three top-level freshmen, including a pair of Chaska High School teammates in Erin Schindler and Sarah Kelly. Kelly, a 5-foot-11-inch middle blocker, was named All-Minnesota State the past two seasons and an All-Metro West Conference honoree the past three. As a senior, she was a Ms. Baden finalist, and made the MSHSL All-Tournament Team. Schindler, a 5-foot-9-inch outside hitter,  broke Chaska's program kill and dig records while earning All-Metro West Conference honors as a freshman and sophomore, an All-Minnesota Honorable Mention as a junior, and an All-State selection as a senior in addition to leading Chaska to a MSHSL tournament championship in 2014. After their junior season, Kelly and Schindler teamed up together to win an AAU National Championship, with Kelly earning the AAU Most Valuable Player honors as well as a USA National All-Tournament Team selection.

Loretto native Emily Torve, a 5-foot-8-inch setter from Heritage Christian Academy,  lettered six years for the Eagles and started the last four seasons for head coach Tom Fuglestad. She earned All-Minnesota Christian Academic Association second team honors as a freshman and first team as a sophomore and junior. She also was named Academic All-State. Additionally, Torve played two years of softball as an outfielder - her father, Kent Torve, played baseball professionally in the minor league system of the Chicago White Sox, and collegiately  at San Diego State University.
 THE SCHEDULE
UMD faces another steep test out of the gates when they head south to the Tampa Classic, hosted by the defending National Champion, the University of Tampa - also the only team to hand the Bulldogs defeat during the 2014 regular season. The Bulldogs open with regional rival Wayne State (Mich.) University at 10:00 a.m. ET on Friday, Sept. 4 with matches against Wheeling Jesuit University and Western Washington University over the course of the weekend before the rematch with the host Spartans on Saturday at 7:00 p.m. ET.

The non-conference schedule continues the following weekend at the U-Indy Tournament hosted by the University of Indianapolis, where the Bulldogs will take on the host greyhounds, Colorado School of Mines, Ashland (Ohio) University, and Wheeling Jesuit for the second time in as many weeks. Among its early season foes, UMD faced just Tampa a season ago, but defeated Wheeling, Indianapolis, and Wayne State during the 2013 season. The Bulldogs are 0-1 all-time against Western Washington, but the teams haven't faced off since 2008. UMD defeated Ashland in the teams' lone meeting back in 2012, while the team will meet Colorado Mines for the first team on Friday, Sept. 11 to open the action in Indianapolis.

The NSIC and home regular season schedules both begin on Thursday, Sept. 17 when the University of Minnesota, Crookston comes to Duluth for a match-up set to broadcast on My9 TV locally (as will the team's meeting with St. Cloud State University the next Tuesday). Concordia-St. Paul travels to Romano Gym once again on Tuesday, Oct. 6 to open Homecoming festitivites on campus before the Bulldogs head out for a weekend match-up against Southwest Minnesota State in Marshall. Wayne State (Neb.) College, selected fourth in the conference poll will come to Duluth with revenge on its mind on Oct. 17 after the Bulldogs handed them four losses a season ago: one in Wayne, and three in Duluth: during the regular season, NSIC Tournament Championship match, and NCAA II Central Region Tournament.

Of the four other NSIC teams ranked in final AVCA Coaches' Poll a season ago (Southwest Minnesota State, Concordia, Wayne, and Augustana), UMD will only meet Concordia twice during the regular season with a return match in St. Paul on Saturday, Oct. 24. The Bulldogs begin their quest for the NSIC title and an NCAA II Championship with the team's first practice on Monday, Aug. 17 with the first game action taking place Friday, Sept. 4 when UMD and Wayne State (Mich.) take the court in Tampa at 9:00 a.m. local Duluth time.