SIOUX FALLS – Finishing seventh in the NSIC regular season standings, University of Sioux Falls Volleyball begins the postseason at top-five ranked Southwest Minnesota State on Wednesday, Nov. 16 at 7 p.m. The Cougars earned the No. 7 seed with a Division II era-best 19-9 overall and 13-7 NSIC records and SMSU was named co-champion of the NSIC and enter the post season as the No. 2 seed with a 24-4 overall record, finishing at 18-2 in NSIC season.
 
How to follow the match

• Live stats for Wednesday's match are available HERE.
• All NSIC matches are available for live streaming through Stretch Internet and can be seen at USFCougars.com/watch
• Live stats and video links as well as a full tournament bracket is available at NorthernSun.org/NSICvb

 
Keeping up with the Cougars
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Second set

• If Cougars defeat Southwest Minnesota State on Wednesday they will advance to the NSIC Tournament semifinals and face the winner of No. 3 Minnesota Duluth and No. 6 Wayne State on Saturday, Nov. 19 at 12 p.m.
• The semifinal and final matches will be hosted by the highest remaining seed after the first round is completed
• The NSIC Tournament championship match is set for Sunday, Nov. 20 at 2 p.m.

 
Sioux Falls hits program bests in overall and NSIC records

• With sweeps of Minot State and University of Mary to close out the regular season, USF set two new program records for wins since joining NCAA Division II
• The Cougars finished the regular season at 19-9, a .679 winning percentage, their best in five seasons as a full-time member of NCAA Division II
• The 19 regular season wins tie the 2013 squad's total, but all 19 wins this season came against NCAA Division II opponents
• USF's 13-7 league record is most wins and highest winning percentage (.650) since joining the NSIC in 2012
• The seventh-place finish ties the 2013 squad for the highest league finish in their five-year membership of the NSIC

 
Postseason primer: Cougars clinch third NSIC Tourney berth in four years

• In five years as members of the NSIC, Sioux Falls has earned a postseason bid in three, all coming in the past four seasons
• The Cougars were the eighth seed in 2013 and 2014 and faced the top seed Minnesota Duluth each time
• In 2013, USF was swept by the Bulldogs, but nearly completed an historic comeback against UMD the following season
• Down 0-2, USF eked out two two-point victories in the third and fourth sets before eventually falling in the fifth set
• At No. 7, USF is the highest seed in their NSIC postseason history and they will face No. 2 seed Southwest Minnesota State for the first time in nonconference play
• USF's overall record against Southwest Minnesota stands at 1-9, winning the second of two matches in 2013
• The lone Cougar victory came on the road and USF's road record at SMSU is 1-4
• This season, Sioux Falls is 0-2, losing in straight sets at SMSU in their first meeting before pushing the Mustangs to four sets in the return trip

 
Lexi Scott earns USF's first NSIC player of the week honor in three years

• After a near-flawless weekend, sophomore middle blocker Lexi Scott was named the NSIC offensive player of the week
• Scott averaged 4.00 kills per set with a .686 attack percentage, hitting 24 kills on 32 attacks with just two errors
• She added 11 block assists and a service ace to arrive at 30.5 points on the weekend an average of 5.08 per set
• Against U-Mary on Saturday, Scott was error-free and connected on 14 kills in 18 attempts, leading her to a .778 attack percentage, which ranks second all time at USF for a single match
• Opening the weekend, Scott blasted 10 kills in 14 attempts and committed just two errors for another impressive attack percentage with .571 mark

 
Rockeman and Scott named to All-NSIC second team

• Released on Thursday afternoon, sophomores Makenna Rockeman and Lexi Scott were named to the All-NSIC second team
• It is the first honor for each of the them and they are the third and fourth different Cougars to earn the recognition form the NSIC
• It marks just the second time in five years that the Cougars have placed multiple players on the same All-NSIC team
• Emily Johnson and Smamntha Lovell both were named to the All-NSIC second team in 2013
• In conference-only matches, Rockeman ranks third in the NSIC with an average of 3.82 kills per set and her point per set mark of 4.42 also ranks third
• Scott had a monster finish to the season, hitting double-digit kills in five straight matches, including four with 16 or more
• She leads the Cougars with a .348 attack percentage and is second with 90 total blocks

 
Cougars picked ninth in NSIC preseason coaches' poll

• Released on Aug. 10, USF was picked ninth in the NSIC preseason coaches' poll
• The Cougars collected 105 points in the poll for their ninth-place billing
• USF finished tied for 12th in the league standings on year ago, posting a 5-15 conference record
• After the graduation of Michelle Ritland, USF returns five starters and libero Abby Folk for the 2016 season
• Seven-time national champion Concordia-St. Paul was tabbed as the favorite while Southwest Minnesota State and Wayne State all received first-place votes.

 
McCartney enters sixth season at USF

• USF Volleyball head coach Joel McCartney enters his sixth season at USF after beginning his tenure in 2011
• In five seasons, McCartney is 97-94 as the Cougars' head coach with a 44-56 mark in NSIC competition
• Overall, this is McCartney's 20th season as a collegiate head coach and he owns a 445-259 record