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All notes courtesy of SMSU Athletics Communications.
THIS WEEK
The No. 10 ranked SMSU volleyball team, after starting the season 3-0 in Pensacola, Fla., is on the road this week in St. Joesph, Mo., competing in the Fairfield Inn & Suites Griffon Volleyball Classic.
SMSU opens play with a match on Thursday against tournament hosts, and No. 11 ranked, Missouri Western State at 6 p.m.
The Mustangs then face off twice on Friday, first against Rockhurst (Mo.) at 11:30 a.m., and Northwest Missouri State at 4:30 p.m.
SMSU finishes the week on Saturday with a match against Oklahoma Christian at 11:30 a.m.
All matches are listed in central time.
MATCH COVERAGE
Live stats and video for all matches will be available at SMSUmustangs.com
More information on the tournament can be found at gogriffons.com
Stay up to date on the Mustangs throughout the weekend by downloading the official SMSU Athletics app.
SERIES HISTORY
SMSU will play Missouri Western State for the 11th time on Thursday, with the Mustangs holding a 7-3 advantage in the series. The last meeting between the two occurred in 2022, Tyler Boddy's first season as head coach, with the Mustangs winning 3-2.
The Mustangs will face the Rockhurst for the sixth time on Friday. The Hawks hold a 3-2 advantage in the series, despite losing to the Mustangs in 2022 and 2024.
SMSU faces Northwest Missouri State for the eighth time on Friday, and the first time in 14 years. The Mustangs have swept the Bearcats in each of the last four meetings.
Oklahoma Christian and SMSU will meet for the first time on Saturday morning.
More information on each individual opponent can be found on page three.
RECAP OF LAST WEEK
The Mustangs began the 2026 season last week in Pensacola, Fla., sweeping Wheeling (W. Va) twice, and sweeping Spring Hill (Ala.)
Mya Krystosek and Natalie Pilney led the team with 25 kills each. Krystosek also led the team in digs with 32, including a 12 kill, 15 dig performance against Spring Hill. Pilney led qualified hitters with a hitting percentage of .444.
Freshman Lindsay Kruse had a stellar weekend in her collegiate debut, leading the Mustangs with 12 total blocks, and leading the NSIC in blocks per set (1.33). Kruse also added 24 kills on .413 hitting.
Freshman Tatem Schmidt and Sydney Thein led the team assist-wise, with Schmidt tallying 60 assists, and two matches of 20+ assists. Thein had 22 assists against Wheeling on Saturday.
After the tournament, Krystosek, Kruse, and Ashley Peltier were named to the all-tournament team.
SMSU AND THE NSIC IN THE POLLS
SMSU moved up four spots in the week one AVCA Division II Coaches' Poll, released on Monday afternoon.
SMSU is one of four teams from the NSIC in the recent poll, with all four teams ranked inside the top 10. St. Cloud State moves up four spots to No. 1, while Wayne State jumps up seven spots to No. 2, and Concordia-St. Paul moves down two spots to No. 3. Minnesota Duluth and Minnesota State are both receiving votes.
Following the AVCA poll released on Aug. 17, the Mustangs have now been ranked in the Top 25 for 255 of the last 256 rankings, dating back to Sept. 5, 2006.