SIOUX FALLS— The University of Sioux Falls Volleyball Team (18-8, 13-5 NSIC, 5^th), which has won 12-of-15 matches, will look to continue their late-season momentum with a weekend road trip to Winona State and Upper Iowa to finish up the regular season.
 
USF will face Winona State (13-13, 10-8 NSIC), who currently is riding a four-match winning streak, on Friday, Nov. 2 for a 6 p.m. match. USF will then turn around and travel to Fayette, Iowa to play Upper Iowa (17-9, 10-8 NSIC) on Saturday, Nov. 3 at 4 p.m.  
 
USF has reached 18 wins in a season for the third time as a DII program. USF is one win away from matching the 2013 and 2016 teams for most wins in a season. However, USF's 13 league wins matches the 2016 Cougars team for most in the DII program era.
 
At Stake – Playoff Seeding
With a little help, the Cougars could earn the number four seed and host a first-round NSIC Tournament match for the first time. In order for the Cougars to move up, they must win twice while Southwest Minnesota State (17-7, 14-4 NSIC, 4^th) must lose at least one match. SMSU also faces Winona State and Upper Iowa this weekend. Wayne State (21-7 overall) is also in the mix for a top-five placing in the tournament as they enter play with a 12-6 league mark. WSC faces Minnesota State and No. 5 Concordia St. Paul in road matches. The NSIC Postseason Tournament is set to begin Tuesday, Nov. 6 at the home site of the top four finishers in the league standings. If the tournament began today, USF would be seeded fifth and play at No. 4 SMSU.
 
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Watch live
For all USF Volleyball home matches and all Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference contests, watch the Cougars live on Stretch Internet at USFCougars.com/watch. Live stats will be available for all matches. Links to home match live stats are available at USFCougars.com/livestats while links to all road match live stats are available on the USF Volleyball schedule at USFCougars.com.
 
Three USF players named to All-Conference Teams
For the first time in school history, USF placed two players on the 18-member All-NSIC first team as Bria Barfnecht and Lexi Scott were named after helping lead USF to one of the program's best seasons at the NCAA DII level. Sophomore Averey Yaksich, who was named to the 15-member All-NSIC second team, was another key contributor on a team that stands 18-8, including 13-5 in league play, and have earned a top-six spot in the NSIC Postseason Tournament which begins Nov. 6. 
 
Scott, a senior exercise science major from Prinsburg, Minn., has become USF's first-ever, three-time All-NSIC honoree. A middle blocker, Scott was named to the first team after a stellar season. She ranks fourth in the NSIC and 14^th in the NCAA in hitting percentage at .392 with 271 kills on 513 attacks. In 26 matches and 95 sets, Scott has a 2.85 kills per set average, 49 digs and leads the team with 94 total blocks or 0.99 per set.
 
Barfnecht, a senior nursing major from Delano, Minn., has been one of the league's top opposite hitters throughout 2018. Barfnecht, who earned her second-ever NSIC Offensive Player of the Week honor on Oct. 29, was named to the All-NSIC for the first time. Barfnecht, who has 57 kills on 91 attacks and a .627 hitting percentage over the past four matches, ranks second in the NSIC, as well as ninth in the country, with a .397 hitting percentage.
 
Yaksich has had a standout sophomore season as an outside hitter with 263 kills on 756 attacks for a .217 hitting percentage. Yaksich, who is a psychology major from Omaha, Neb., has registered 201 digs or 2.12 per set, 24 service aces, 24 assists and 34 total blocks in a breakout season. She has six posted six double doubles (kills, digs). In two seasons with the Cougars, Yaksich already ranks in USF's career top-10 in kills (446, 9th), attacks (1,342, 7th) and digs (373, 7th).
 
USF Offense continues to shine
The Cougars are one of the top hitting teams in the country. The Cougars rank second in NCAA DII and the NSIC in hitting percentage at .287 (1329 K, 3189 A). They are also fifth in kills (13.84 per set, 1329 total), fifth in assists per set at 12.98 (1246 in 96 sets); sixth in blocks at 2.04 per set (313 block assists and 39 block solos) and first in service aces with 163 or 1.70 per set in league statistics.
 
USF has three players ranked in the top-10 in the NSIC in hitting percentage this season. Barfnecht is ranked second while posting a .397 hitting percentage. Scott, who has been cemented in the top-10 list all season, is in forth with a .392 clip. Junior Abby Feyereisen has recorded an efficient .375 hitting percentage this season, which situates her solidly in ninth place in the conference.
 
Seniors Continue to Lead
This year's team features three of USF's top five all-time kills leaders for the first time in school history. They include career leader Makenna Rockeman at 1,258 with senior Bria Barfnecht, third with 1,015 and senior Lexi Scott, fifth at 956.
 
Recent Action
In their most recent match, USF swept the defending national champions No. 1 Concordia-St. Paul (21-6, 15-3 NSIC), 3-0 (25-15, 25-19, 25-23) behind a team hitting percentage of .456, which was the third-best mark of the season. USF, which converted 48 kills on 90 attempts, put together a .400 hitting percentage for the fifth time this season. USF's defense also stepped up with six total blocks while holding the Golden Bears to a .177 hitting percentage.
 
Barfnecht led the USF offense in both kills and hitting percentage. She posted 15 kills on 20 attempts for a hitting percentage of .750 in the win over CSP. Barfnecht also recorded six digs and three block assists on the night. For the second straight match, Barfnecht did not commit a hitting error. In 46 attacks in two matches this weekend, she had 30 kills for a .652 hitting mark. She also surpassed 1,000 career kills and has 1,015 for third all-time on USF's DII career chart.
 
Barfnecht and Goerger receive Player of the Week honors
Bria Barfnecht was named the NSIC Co-Offensive Player of the Week and Krista Goerger selected NSIC Setter of the Week following USF's sweep of Minnesota State and No. 1 Concordia St. Paul on Oct. 26-27. Barfnecht received her second NSIC weekly honor and Goerger was recognized for the first time. USF has had seven total NSIC players of the week during its time in the league.
 
Series Histories
                Vs. Winona State- Winona leads series 6-3
Winona State ultimately holds the series lead over USF six games to three, but last season the Cougars snapped a five game losing streak against the Warriors after beating them, 3-1 in 2012. Rockeman had a dominating performance on offense totaling 15 kills and three service aces. Scotthad 11 kills throughout the match, and added five blocks to her stat line in their 2017 meeting. The team had 45 total kills while posting a .184 hitting percentage during the 2017 matchup. Prior to last season's meeting, USF had fallen five consecutive times against the Warriors. Earlier this season, USF swept WSU, 3-0, behind Barfnecht's 16-kill performance. Yaksich added 13 kills to the effort and Goerger recorded 48 assists as the team registered a .291 hitting percentage.
 
                Vs. Upper Iowa- Series tied 4-4
Heading into Saturday's match against the Upper Iowa, the USF holds the series advantage, 5-4 since USF's inception into the NSIC in 2012. The Cougars broke the 4-4 series tie earlier this season when they swept the Peacocks in three sets. Rockeman led USF with 14 kills behind a .414 hitting percentage, while Yaksich posted 13 kills and was one dig away from a double-double with nine digs in the match. In 2015, Barfnecht set a record against Upper Iowa when she posted 15 kills with zero errors in the, 3-1 Cougar victory.
 
Leading the Pride
Joel McCartney took over the USF Volleyball program in July of 2011, its final year of the transition to NCAA Division II and is entering his eighth season as the program's head coach.  McCartney came to USF after a four-year rebuilding project as the head coach of the University of Georgia volleyball program. In McCartney's tenure, the Bulldogs compiled 66 overall wins including 32 in the SEC. Prior to his arrival at USF, McCartney posted a record of 475-271 while coaching at Bellevue for four years, Winthrop for six years, and Georgia for four years.
 
Under McCartney's leadership, the Cougar program has steadily climbed the competitive ladder, becoming a Top-50 power in arguably the strongest (NSIC) conference in the nation. McCartney inherited the Cougar program in its final year of the transition, and since that time, he has led the team's improvement from a ranking of 242 to a program record 29 in the PABLO Ratings Index. During McCartney's tenure at USF, the program has achieved a 136-118 record overall and a 68-73 in conference record.