Dustin

Anybody got an update on the game?

I'm not following the stats - who's playing well?

Are you there Darrell, or just following stats?

Anybody going to be reporting live from Brookings tonight? I was thinking of going for tonight and tomorrow (especially wanted to see the Iowa game), but decided the week had been hectic enough without a road trip.

Regarding serving - from what I've seen, serving isn't a big advantage, and doesn't seem to be emphasized in the college game. I have played recreational volleyball, and serving can be a huge advantage, especially if your serve is a curveball and tough to receive. From what I see at UND games, no player (from any team) has a really tough serve to receive. I have watched college volleyball on TV, and there are some players with nasty jump serves, but not many. I agree with nodak651 that the receiving team has the first chance to set up the offense.

UND eked it out. 25-22 again.

Another close set - 25-23 UND for 2-1 lead. One thing is for sure, these teams are even.

Tied at 1 set a piece. Both scores were 25-22, I believe.

15-12 UND in game 5!!

Thrilling game 4 with a 30-28 UND win! Work is not over yet, though.

2 close sets - 26-24 USD, then 25-21 UND. Good crowd on hand for this one.

If I remember correctly, the girls lost at USD last year, kind of unexpectedly, so I hope that gets revenged tonight.

I didn't think UND would handle Tulane so easily. Last season, Tulane was #54 in RPI with a 28-4 record. They are 0-4 this year, but those losses came at UTSA (#49 RPI in '13, received votes this season in the coaches' poll), Texas A&M (#29 in RPI in '13), and Iowa (#119 in RPI in '13), so they haven't played slouches. I hope this is an indication that we are a top 54 RPI program.

Nice way to end a long road trip, but I'm not sure how good Drake is. Their RPI to end last season was 303, with a 2-28 record. Their three wins this year are against UMKC, UNO, and Central Michigan. I think UND is clearly the better team, and should have expected to win.

Sydney Griffin looks fine at setter. I'm guessing she will play when Husfeldt needs rest.

Second set was also close 25-22. Though I'm unsure which team actually won!

Without actually counting, I would say around 100. A couple if the girls switched sides during the set break. The newcomers most likely to push for playing time are Magda Zietek and Julia Kaczorowska, IMO. Emily Thompson and Chelsea Moser look to have improved their game.

At the scrimmage. Anna Pioske and Faith Dooley are on the sidelines. It looks like mostly veterans vs. mostly newcomers. First set went 25-23 to the mostly veterans.

Since ESPN and Fox are competing networks, they would not overlap on this one. I think the FCS broadcasts are announced closer to game time (probably week-of).

One thing I remember Pryor saying was that Felicia Ulrich was under utilized by Hardee. So hopefully she can become the senior leadership for the hitters, and then other girls can follow suit.

Idaho has a solid program, and they will add some very nice competition to the Big Sky. 2013 RPI was 139, which would place them 4th in the Big Sky (UND was 112). They've had the same coach for 14 years, who led them to 2 NCAA tournaments, so their AD must think she's doing something right.

The 2014 volleyball roster has been posted on UNDsports.com - quite a different look to the team this year. We'll have to see what kind of impact the Hardee incident had on the team. The roster has been cut from 19 to 16 (not a huge change - I always thought we had a lot of girls on the sidelines). Lots of new (and unpronouncable!) names, with 4 countries represented (USA, Canada, Poland, Australia). Missing from last year's team (2013 non-seniors) are Kellie Schmidt (never played a game, I think Hardee was red-shirting her), Emily Asche, Dani McNallan, Candice Yager, Meagan Hollis, and Naomi Dahl - all of which were ND/MN girls (except Hollis), which is too bad. The good news is that we have nearly all of our starters back, and, hopefully, some new playmakers. Excited to see what's about to unfold!

Yes, I agree. It was almost as if the new format was already in place last season, since the regular season champ got to host.

Under the old system, UND would not have hosted the 2014 volleyball championship, because Portland St. won the tie-breaker. I fully anticipate that UND will host the VB before too long, though.

Thanks. I've been wanting to know this for a long time.