For Immediate Release
Monday, October 12, 2026
NSIC Media Relations
Media Packet

NSIC Offensive Player of the Week
#3 Makenna Nold (OH/RS, 5-10, Jr., Jamestown, N.D. / Jamestown HS) - Concordia-St. Paul
- Led the NSIC with 5.50 points per set in a 2-0 week
- Hit .457 while averaging 4.17 kills per set
- Recorded 13 kills and 3 aces in a sweep of MSU Moorhead
- Added 12 kills in a sweep of Minnesota Crookston
- Contributed 2.00 digs and 1.17 blocks per set
- Leads the NSIC in points and kills per set this season
- Named NSIC Offensive Player of the Week for the second time this season (9/8/26)

NSIC Defensive Player of the Week
#14 Ashlynn Schroeder (L/DS, 5-9, So., Eau Claire, Wis. / Eau Claire Memorial) - SMSU
- Led SMSU with 48 digs in wins over Jamestown and Northern State
- Averaged an NSIC best 5.33 digs per set on the weekend
- Recorded 23 digs and 4 assists against Jamestown
- Tied her career high with 25 digs against Northern State
- Added six assists versus the Wolves

NSIC Setter of the Week
#14 Braya LaPlant (S, 6-0, Jr., Grand Rapids, Minn. / Grand Rapids HS) - St. Cloud State
- Ranked second in the NSIC in assists per set at 13.17 in wins over BSU and No. 14 UMD
- Helped guide the Huskies to a league-leading 16.17 kills/set on .306 hitting
- Averaged 2.00 digs per set
- Recorded a match-high 44 assists and seven digs in SCSU’s road sweep of Bemidji State
- Her 44 assists were the second most in a three set match across the conference
- Tallied a match-high 35 assists and five digs in the Huskies road sweep of UMD
- Became the 10th player in program history to surpass 2,000 career assists
- Named NSIC Setter of the Week for the second week in a row

Others Under Consideration
OFFENSE
Reagan Jansen (Augustana)
- Tallied 28 kills while hitting .302 in a 2-0 week for Augustana
- Recorded two double-doubles
- Posted 16 kills and 10 digs in a win over Minot State
- Added 12 kills, 10 digs, and a block in a win over UMary
- Averaged 3.50 kills and 2.50 digs per set
Ava Athman (Bemidji State)
- Led the Beavers to a 1-1 weekend against St. Cloud State and Minnesota State
- Hit .460 with 27 kills on 50 attempts
- Led the team with 27.5 points
- Added 8 digs and 2 assists
- Helped Bemidji State earn its first sweep of Minnesota State in program history
- Recorded 20 kills while hitting .529 against Minnesota State
Avery Klein (Minnesota State)
- Recorded 13 kills in a win over No. 14 Minnesota Duluth
- Led the team in hitting percentage, kills, and kills per set
- Finished the week with 26 kills
- Added 3 service aces
Katelyn Schroeder (Northern State)
- Recorded a double-double in both matches
- Led the Wolves with 18 kills, 18 digs, 3 aces, and 21.5 points against Southwest Minnesota State
- Totaled 37 kills, 35 digs, and 41 points on the weekend
- Averaged 3.7 kills and 3.5 digs per set
- Sparked key scoring runs against Southwest Minnesota State
- Helped Northern State hit .337 against Sioux Falls
Ella Walker (Sioux Falls)
- Led Sioux Falls with 30 kills across eight sets
- Averaged 3.75 kills per set
- Hit .609 on the weekend with only two attacking errors
- Recorded 19 kills while hitting .600 against Northern State
- Added 11 kills while hitting .625 against Jamestown
- Finished with 31.5 points and 3 total blocks
Leah Jones (Southwest Minnesota State)
- Led SMSU in kills during wins over Jamestown and Northern State
- Recorded 35 kills and hit .241 during the weekend
- Added 3.9 kills per set
- Had 8 kills and 3 blocks against Jamestown
- Posted a career-high 27 kills while hitting .375 against Northern State
Chloe Hanel (Wayne State)
- Averaged 4.17 kills and 1.17 blocks per set in sweeps of UMary and Minot State
- Hit .548 with 25 kills and just 2 errors on 42 attacks
- Recorded 13 kills in a win over UMary

DEFENSE
Jazmen Kutey (Augustana)
- Recorded 7 total blocks in a 3-1 win over UMary
- Posted 1 solo block and 6 assisted blocks
- Added 9 kills while hitting .600
- Contributed 1 dig
- Averaged 1.75 blocks and 2.25 kills per set
Ava Boelter (Bemidji State)
- Led the Beavers with 24 digs and 67 receptions against Minnesota State and St. Cloud State
- Recorded 3 service aces
- Added 4 assists
Madison Reed (Minnesota Duluth)
- Led the Bulldogs with 3.71 digs per set against Minnesota State and St. Cloud State
- Recorded a match-high 14 digs against the Mavericks
- Added 12 digs against the Huskies
- Contributed 5 assists on the weekend
Olivia Sturgis (Minnesota State)
- Led the team with 8 blocks
- Recorded 6 blocks in a win over No. 14 Minnesota Duluth
- Registered a match-sealing block against the Bulldogs
- Led the team in blocks per set
- Added 2 digs
Maya Vibeto (Minot State)
- Totaled 53 digs over three matches
- Averaged 17.7 digs per match
- Added 10 assists and 5 service aces
- Helped Minot State to a win over Brandon (CAN)
Ashley Yost (Northern State)
- Anchored the defense with 39 digs against Sioux Falls and Southwest Minnesota State
- Led the team with 19 digs against Sioux Falls and 20 against SMSU
- Added 4 assists and 1 service ace
- Helped hold SMSU below its season hitting average
- Helped force a season-high 28 attacking errors by the Mustangs
Maci Lerseth (Sioux Falls)
- Recorded 39 digs in 8 sets
- Averaged 4.88 digs per set
- Posted a match-high 28 digs against Northern State
- Added 11 digs against Jamestown
- Led Sioux Falls in digs in both matches
- Finished the weekend without a reception error
- Contributed 11 assists and 2 service aces
Mia Berg (Wayne State)
- Averaged 3.00 kills and 1.67 blocks per set in home sweeps over UMary and Minot State
- Hit .556 during the weekend
- Recorded 6 kills and 6 blocks against UMary
- Added 12 kills and 4 blocks against Minot State
Lily Shields (Winona State)
- Finished the weekend with 22 total digs
- Helped Winona State sweep Minnesota Crookston and compete against MSU Moorhead

SETTER
Madison Tripp (Bemidji State)
- Set at .485 percent in 1-1 weekend against SCSU and MSU
- Marked 80 total assists, 13.33 per set, to lead the conference on the weekend
- Added five aces and a kill
- Marked three assisted blocks
Nilsson Ava (Northern State)
- Recorded a career-high 66 assists in the match against USF
- Added season-highs of three aces and three blocks versus No. 12 SMSU
- Averaged 11.1 assists per set; added eight digs each match and totaled four aces and four blocks
- Set up Northern to hit .337 against Sioux Falls
- Assisted on the last four points NSU won in their fifth-set win over USF
- Had a kill and three straight assists to tie the Mustangs 9-9 in the third set the Wolves would later win

 
NSIC Volleyball Players of the Week
8/31/26
O: #18 Linnea Nesheim - Northern State
D: #1 Sophie Ketterling - Jamestown
S: #9 Ava Nilsson- Northern State
9/8/26
O: #3 Makenna Nold - Concordia-St. Paul
D: #1 Sophie Ketterling - Jamestown (2)
S: #17 Molly Romano - Wayne State
9/14/26
O: #18 Linnea Nesheim - Northern State (2)
D: #1 Maya Vibeto - Minot State
S: #9 Ava Nilsson- Northern State (2)
9/21/26
O: #15 Channatee Robles - Wayne State
D: #18 Elyse Karrels - Minnesota Duluth
S: #9 Ava Jones - Minnesota Duluth
9/28/26
O: #17 Madeline Guetzkow - Minnesota Duluth 
D: #19 Ella Walker - Sioux Falls 
S: #9 Ava Jones - Minnesota Duluth (2)
10/5/26
O: #13 Ava Athman - Bemidji State
D: #4 Chloe Hanel - Wayne State
S: #14 Braya LaPlant - St. Cloud State
10/12/26
O: #3 Makenna Nold - Concordia-St. Paul (2)
D: #14 Ashlynn Schroeder - SMSU
S: #14 Braya LaPlant - St. Cloud State (2)

About the NSIC
The NSIC is a 16-team, 18-sport, NCAA Division II conference with institutions located in Minnesota, Nebraska, North Dakota, and South Dakota. The NSIC is a model Division II conference that uses high-level athletics competition to develop champions in the classroom and community while empowering student-athletes to be impactful and positive leaders. Formed in 1992 by the merger of the Northern Intercollegiate Conference (men’s league) and the Northern Sun Conference (women’s league), the NSIC has flourished over the past quarter century, maturing into a union of Upper Midwest colleges and universities. The NSIC has won 27 team national championships and crowned 128 individual national champions. For additional information, visit NorthernSun.org.

About NCAA Division II
The NCAA, the national governing body for college athletics, is a volunteer association of more than 1,000 colleges and universities that classify their athletics programs in one of three membership divisions. The 300+ institutions in NCAA Division II support a balanced approach in which student-athletes can earn scholarships based on their athletic ability, pursue their desired academic degree, and participate in all the campus and surrounding community have to offer. Division II student-athletes annually graduate at rates higher than their student body peers, and they have access to the best championships-participant ratio among the NCAA’s three divisions. Division II gives student-athletes the unique opportunity to compete in the classroom, on the field, in their career, for their causes, and on their terms. For additional information, visit NCAA.org.