University of St. Thomas Athletics
Thursday, September 28
Fargo, N.D. / Bentson Bunker Fieldhouse
7:00 p.m. Central
at
North Dakota State
Photo by: Orney Walker
St. Thomas travels to FlickerTail State for first Summit League road matches
9/26/2023 9:31:00 AM | Volleyball
ST. PAUL, Minn. – The Tommie Volleyball program hits the road to take on North Dakota State and North Dakota to continue Summit League play on Thursday and Friday.
St. Thomas carries on play in the Summit League beginning at 7 p.m. on Thursday at the Bentson Bunker Fieldhouse against the Bison, and then proceeding Friday at 7 p.m. at the Betty Engelstad Sioux Center against the Fighting Hawks.
Summit League Opener
In their 2023 Summit League Opener, St. Thomas volleyball suffered a 3-0 loss to South Dakota State (16-25, 23-25, 24-26) in Schoenecker Arena to start off conference play.
The Tommies and the Jackrabbits shared back-and-forth separation to begin the first set as both teams took three point leads early. After the Tommies took the lead 8-5, a string of kills by the Jackrabbit pin hitters and a few Tommie hitting errors allowed South Dakota State to pull ahead. The Tommies looked to push back with three consecutive kills led by freshman Morgan Kealy, but the deficit was too much.
St Thomas fell behind again in the second set 12-9 until two kills by sophomore Tezra Rudzitis and a service ace by sophomore Maria Chapman helped the Tommies take a 13-12 lead. Rudzitis continued to hit well in the set, leading the Tommies with five kills, but the Jackrabbits separated again in the end.
The Tommies had their biggest lead of the night with six points at 17-11 in the third set but were unable to take hold off the Jackrabbits who scored nine of the last 13 points to finish the match.
Sophomore Ella Voegele led the match in digs with 23 digs. She averaged 7.67 digs per set in the league opener after entering the match second in the league with 4.10 digs per set. Sophomores Kaitlynn Peterson and Tezra Rudzitis led the Tommies with nine kills while Tezra finished the match with a .563 hitting percentage. She totaled 16 attempts with no errors. Freshman Morgan Kealy lead the team in assists with 30 and tied with sophomore Megan Wetter in blocks with two.
Scouting North Dakota State
North Dakota State takes on the Tommies with an overall 9-4 record, posting a 1-1 record in Summit League play. The Bison opened conference matches with a 3-1 win over Oral Roberts (25-22, 25-18, 22-25, 25-21) and a 0-3 loss against Denver (23-25, 23-25, 24-26). NDSU sits atop of the Summit League in points per set (17.01), hitting percentage (.256), assists per set (12.31) and kills per set (13.43).
Ali Hinze and Alexis Boiling are averaging 3.29 and 2.90 kills per set, respectively, as outside hitters through 13 matches this year. Boiling is 4th in the Summit League in hitting percentage (.341), and sophomore middle blocker Ally Barth is 1st at a mark of .366. Senior setter Kelley Johnson was awarded the TicketSmarter Summit League Offensive Peak Performer of the Week last week after passing out a team-high 114 total assists and averaging a team-best 10.35 per set. She also added 25 digs, 12 kills, and six blocks to add to her stat line. Johnson is the third different Bison to win the award this season, joining Ali Hinze on Aug. 29, and Morgan Middleton on Sept. 12.
Scouting North Dakota
North Dakota welcomes the Tommies to Grand Forks hoisting a record of 4-10 on the season, with a 1-1 record in Summit League action. The Fighting Hawks started off conference play dropping their opener to Denver (21-25, 18-25, 17-25), before bouncing back in a five-set thriller win over Oral Roberts (25-18, 22-25, 25-23, 15-25, 16-14). North Dakota welcomes conference opponent Omaha to Grand Forks on Thursday before matching up against the Tommies on Friday.
North Dakota is sixth in the Summit League in assists per set (10.63) and kills per set (11.65). Graduate senior setter is currently eighth in the Summit League in assists per set (5.22), and freshman setter Teagan Timperley ranks fifth in the conference in service aces per set averaging 0.38 per set.
Can You Dig It?
Sophomore libero Ella Voegele has been one of the best when it comes to digs in the Summit League, entering the week second in the conference with 4.34 digs per set, which ranks tied for 78th through all of NCAA Division I. She set the St. Thomas DI record with 23 digs in three sets against South Dakota State, averaging out to 7.67 digs per set.
Beginning Another Decade
Head Coach Thanh Pham, who will coach his 650th match with the Tommies this season, enters his 21st season leading the program. His tenure is the longest among the nine Summit League head coaches at their respective schools. Pham is set to reach the 650-match mark on Friday, Sept. 29, a road match at North Dakota. He notched his 10th career NCAA Division I win Sep. 9 during the victory over Northern Illinois.
The Staff's All Back
All four members of the Tommie Volleyball coaching staff return for the 2023 season. Joining Pham during the previous two seasons since joining NCAA Division I are assistant coaches Joy Tietz and David Ganser. In his second season with the program is assistant coach Kevin Rivas. Also in her second season is director of operations Malissa LeClaire.
Two Time All-Tournament Team
Sophomore Ella Voegele ended the Tommie Volleyball tournament season with her second all-tournament team selection in Green Bay this past weekend. Voegele led the Purple in digs for the ninth time this season, adding 11 on Friday. She ended the tournament recording 21 digs in just the two Capital Credit Union Classic matches alone.
A Career-High Kind of Day
The Sep. 9 five-set, comeback victory over Northern Illinois was powered by career high offensive stats from several Tommies. Freshman Ellie Gustafson led the Tommies with 18 kills, five more than her previous career high set during the season opener at UIC and hit a career best .368.
Sophomore Kaitlynn Peterson also topped her previous career high in kills by five, finishing Saturday's match with 17. She added career bests with 18 points, eight digs, and one assist.
Sophomore Megan Wetter opened the tournament with a career high 12 kills in the win over Evansville before posting 16 against Northern Illinois. She tacked on one block and tied the St. Thomas NCAA Division I single-match record with five service aces to finish with 21.5 points against Northern Illinois.
Freshman Morgan Kealy accounted for 46 of the Tommies 60 assists against NIU, setting a new career best and topping her own mark for the second most assists in a single match for the Purple in the DI era. She recorded her sixth double-double of the season with 12 digs, one shy of junior Lauren Galvin's team high from the 2022 season.
Summit League Preseason Poll
The Tommies enter the season ranked eighth as the 2023 Summit League Preseason Coaches' Poll was released Wednesday, August 23. St. Thomas garnered 16 points to finish ahead of Oral Roberts in the poll.
Reigning Summit League regular season and tournament champion South Dakota was voted to finish first with 61 points and six first-place votes. North Dakota State followed in second with 54 points and two first-place votes while Omaha rounded out the top three spots with 53 points and the final first-place vote.
Keep an Eye Out
Junior outside hitter Lauren Galvin and sophomore middle blocker Emma Goerger were selected as the team's Players to Watch for 2023. Galvin led the Tommies and ranked 10th in the league with 3.12 kills per set and led the team and was 11th in the Summit with 3.49 points per set. Goerger led the Tommies with 0.97 blocks per set and followed Galvin with 2.67 points per set.
Nice to Meet You
Among the 11 non-conference opponents, the Tommies faced nine for the first time in program history. The only familiar opponents during the non-conference schedule are Montana State and Central Michigan. The Purple beat the Bobcats in five sets during the 2022 season before taking a 3-1 loss Aug. 31 to open the Tommie Invitational. St. Thomas also played Central Michigan in 2022, a 3-1 loss that was avenged with a 3-0 win on Sept. 14, 2023 in Green Bay, Wis.
The Youth Movement Continues
The 20-member Tommie squad is comprised of nine sophomores and five freshmen, to go along with two seniors and four juniors. St. Thomas is the only program in the country with a true sophomore class of at least nine student-athletes and is one of two to have a true sophomore, junior, or senior class of at least nine, joining UT Chattanooga who has a class of nine true juniors.
St. Thomas has seven new student-athletes on its roster this season: Bradley transfer and outside hitter Kaitlynn Peterson (Lakeville, Minn.), UNC Greensboro transfer and defensive specialist Ella Voegele (Plymouth, Minn.), freshman right side Emily Clausen (Waukesha, Wis.), freshman outside hitter Ellie Gustafson (Monticello, Wis.), freshman setter Morgan Kealy (River Falls, Wis.), freshman middle blocker Addison Schmotzer (Madison, Wis.), and freshman outside hitter Miriam Unongo (Minneapolis, Minn.).
Tommie Invitational Volleyball Tournament
The Tommies hosted their first tournament, the Tommie Invitational Volleyball Tournament, as an NCAA Division I program. St. Thomas went 1-2 during the tournament, grabbing a 3-1 win over California Baptist and taking losses of 3-1 to Milwaukee and Montana State.
Summit League Network
Beginning with the 2023 season, all home Tommie Volleyball matches, and all Summit League matches will be streamed exclusively on the Summit League Network, in partnership with Midco Sports. A subscription-based network, viewers can access all St. Thomas athletics events HERE.
Looking at the Yearbook
Reflecting on 2022, the Tommies fielded one of the youngest teams across all of NCAA Division I. Last year's squad included just one senior and three juniors with the youth of sophomores and freshmen including 16 student-athletes.
The Toms improved one victory over their 2021 season total as their second fall of Division I play, but the Purple continue to improve and compete at a high level. They picked up nonconference wins at 14-win Montana State and 18-win Saint Louis and swept Western Illinois in conference play. Both wins against Western Illinois came in straight sets.
All-Freshman Team: Part Two
Emma Goerger and Tezra Rudzitis followed in the footsteps of junior Lauren Galvin as selections to the seven-player Summit League All-Freshman Team last season. Goerger was one of four Toms to play in all 30 matches and ranked ninth in the league with 0.97 blocks per set and 24th with 2.67 points per set. She had 101 total blocks and 195 total kills. Rudzitis played in 28 matches with 21 starts and was second for St. Thomas with 2.07 kills per set (190 total kills).
Follow Along
For more information on St. Thomas Volleyball, follow along on X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram at @tommievball
Join Us
To reserve your seat to be a part of the Tommies' 2023 season, click HERE to view ticketing information and purchase options.
-- St. Thomas Athletics --
St. Thomas carries on play in the Summit League beginning at 7 p.m. on Thursday at the Bentson Bunker Fieldhouse against the Bison, and then proceeding Friday at 7 p.m. at the Betty Engelstad Sioux Center against the Fighting Hawks.
Summit League Opener
In their 2023 Summit League Opener, St. Thomas volleyball suffered a 3-0 loss to South Dakota State (16-25, 23-25, 24-26) in Schoenecker Arena to start off conference play.
The Tommies and the Jackrabbits shared back-and-forth separation to begin the first set as both teams took three point leads early. After the Tommies took the lead 8-5, a string of kills by the Jackrabbit pin hitters and a few Tommie hitting errors allowed South Dakota State to pull ahead. The Tommies looked to push back with three consecutive kills led by freshman Morgan Kealy, but the deficit was too much.
St Thomas fell behind again in the second set 12-9 until two kills by sophomore Tezra Rudzitis and a service ace by sophomore Maria Chapman helped the Tommies take a 13-12 lead. Rudzitis continued to hit well in the set, leading the Tommies with five kills, but the Jackrabbits separated again in the end.
The Tommies had their biggest lead of the night with six points at 17-11 in the third set but were unable to take hold off the Jackrabbits who scored nine of the last 13 points to finish the match.
Sophomore Ella Voegele led the match in digs with 23 digs. She averaged 7.67 digs per set in the league opener after entering the match second in the league with 4.10 digs per set. Sophomores Kaitlynn Peterson and Tezra Rudzitis led the Tommies with nine kills while Tezra finished the match with a .563 hitting percentage. She totaled 16 attempts with no errors. Freshman Morgan Kealy lead the team in assists with 30 and tied with sophomore Megan Wetter in blocks with two.
Scouting North Dakota State
North Dakota State takes on the Tommies with an overall 9-4 record, posting a 1-1 record in Summit League play. The Bison opened conference matches with a 3-1 win over Oral Roberts (25-22, 25-18, 22-25, 25-21) and a 0-3 loss against Denver (23-25, 23-25, 24-26). NDSU sits atop of the Summit League in points per set (17.01), hitting percentage (.256), assists per set (12.31) and kills per set (13.43).
Ali Hinze and Alexis Boiling are averaging 3.29 and 2.90 kills per set, respectively, as outside hitters through 13 matches this year. Boiling is 4th in the Summit League in hitting percentage (.341), and sophomore middle blocker Ally Barth is 1st at a mark of .366. Senior setter Kelley Johnson was awarded the TicketSmarter Summit League Offensive Peak Performer of the Week last week after passing out a team-high 114 total assists and averaging a team-best 10.35 per set. She also added 25 digs, 12 kills, and six blocks to add to her stat line. Johnson is the third different Bison to win the award this season, joining Ali Hinze on Aug. 29, and Morgan Middleton on Sept. 12.
Scouting North Dakota
North Dakota welcomes the Tommies to Grand Forks hoisting a record of 4-10 on the season, with a 1-1 record in Summit League action. The Fighting Hawks started off conference play dropping their opener to Denver (21-25, 18-25, 17-25), before bouncing back in a five-set thriller win over Oral Roberts (25-18, 22-25, 25-23, 15-25, 16-14). North Dakota welcomes conference opponent Omaha to Grand Forks on Thursday before matching up against the Tommies on Friday.
North Dakota is sixth in the Summit League in assists per set (10.63) and kills per set (11.65). Graduate senior setter is currently eighth in the Summit League in assists per set (5.22), and freshman setter Teagan Timperley ranks fifth in the conference in service aces per set averaging 0.38 per set.
Can You Dig It?
Sophomore libero Ella Voegele has been one of the best when it comes to digs in the Summit League, entering the week second in the conference with 4.34 digs per set, which ranks tied for 78th through all of NCAA Division I. She set the St. Thomas DI record with 23 digs in three sets against South Dakota State, averaging out to 7.67 digs per set.
Beginning Another Decade
Head Coach Thanh Pham, who will coach his 650th match with the Tommies this season, enters his 21st season leading the program. His tenure is the longest among the nine Summit League head coaches at their respective schools. Pham is set to reach the 650-match mark on Friday, Sept. 29, a road match at North Dakota. He notched his 10th career NCAA Division I win Sep. 9 during the victory over Northern Illinois.
The Staff's All Back
All four members of the Tommie Volleyball coaching staff return for the 2023 season. Joining Pham during the previous two seasons since joining NCAA Division I are assistant coaches Joy Tietz and David Ganser. In his second season with the program is assistant coach Kevin Rivas. Also in her second season is director of operations Malissa LeClaire.
Two Time All-Tournament Team
Sophomore Ella Voegele ended the Tommie Volleyball tournament season with her second all-tournament team selection in Green Bay this past weekend. Voegele led the Purple in digs for the ninth time this season, adding 11 on Friday. She ended the tournament recording 21 digs in just the two Capital Credit Union Classic matches alone.
A Career-High Kind of Day
The Sep. 9 five-set, comeback victory over Northern Illinois was powered by career high offensive stats from several Tommies. Freshman Ellie Gustafson led the Tommies with 18 kills, five more than her previous career high set during the season opener at UIC and hit a career best .368.
Sophomore Kaitlynn Peterson also topped her previous career high in kills by five, finishing Saturday's match with 17. She added career bests with 18 points, eight digs, and one assist.
Sophomore Megan Wetter opened the tournament with a career high 12 kills in the win over Evansville before posting 16 against Northern Illinois. She tacked on one block and tied the St. Thomas NCAA Division I single-match record with five service aces to finish with 21.5 points against Northern Illinois.
Freshman Morgan Kealy accounted for 46 of the Tommies 60 assists against NIU, setting a new career best and topping her own mark for the second most assists in a single match for the Purple in the DI era. She recorded her sixth double-double of the season with 12 digs, one shy of junior Lauren Galvin's team high from the 2022 season.
Summit League Preseason Poll
The Tommies enter the season ranked eighth as the 2023 Summit League Preseason Coaches' Poll was released Wednesday, August 23. St. Thomas garnered 16 points to finish ahead of Oral Roberts in the poll.
Reigning Summit League regular season and tournament champion South Dakota was voted to finish first with 61 points and six first-place votes. North Dakota State followed in second with 54 points and two first-place votes while Omaha rounded out the top three spots with 53 points and the final first-place vote.
Keep an Eye Out
Junior outside hitter Lauren Galvin and sophomore middle blocker Emma Goerger were selected as the team's Players to Watch for 2023. Galvin led the Tommies and ranked 10th in the league with 3.12 kills per set and led the team and was 11th in the Summit with 3.49 points per set. Goerger led the Tommies with 0.97 blocks per set and followed Galvin with 2.67 points per set.
Nice to Meet You
Among the 11 non-conference opponents, the Tommies faced nine for the first time in program history. The only familiar opponents during the non-conference schedule are Montana State and Central Michigan. The Purple beat the Bobcats in five sets during the 2022 season before taking a 3-1 loss Aug. 31 to open the Tommie Invitational. St. Thomas also played Central Michigan in 2022, a 3-1 loss that was avenged with a 3-0 win on Sept. 14, 2023 in Green Bay, Wis.
The Youth Movement Continues
The 20-member Tommie squad is comprised of nine sophomores and five freshmen, to go along with two seniors and four juniors. St. Thomas is the only program in the country with a true sophomore class of at least nine student-athletes and is one of two to have a true sophomore, junior, or senior class of at least nine, joining UT Chattanooga who has a class of nine true juniors.
St. Thomas has seven new student-athletes on its roster this season: Bradley transfer and outside hitter Kaitlynn Peterson (Lakeville, Minn.), UNC Greensboro transfer and defensive specialist Ella Voegele (Plymouth, Minn.), freshman right side Emily Clausen (Waukesha, Wis.), freshman outside hitter Ellie Gustafson (Monticello, Wis.), freshman setter Morgan Kealy (River Falls, Wis.), freshman middle blocker Addison Schmotzer (Madison, Wis.), and freshman outside hitter Miriam Unongo (Minneapolis, Minn.).
Tommie Invitational Volleyball Tournament
The Tommies hosted their first tournament, the Tommie Invitational Volleyball Tournament, as an NCAA Division I program. St. Thomas went 1-2 during the tournament, grabbing a 3-1 win over California Baptist and taking losses of 3-1 to Milwaukee and Montana State.
Summit League Network
Beginning with the 2023 season, all home Tommie Volleyball matches, and all Summit League matches will be streamed exclusively on the Summit League Network, in partnership with Midco Sports. A subscription-based network, viewers can access all St. Thomas athletics events HERE.
Looking at the Yearbook
Reflecting on 2022, the Tommies fielded one of the youngest teams across all of NCAA Division I. Last year's squad included just one senior and three juniors with the youth of sophomores and freshmen including 16 student-athletes.
The Toms improved one victory over their 2021 season total as their second fall of Division I play, but the Purple continue to improve and compete at a high level. They picked up nonconference wins at 14-win Montana State and 18-win Saint Louis and swept Western Illinois in conference play. Both wins against Western Illinois came in straight sets.
All-Freshman Team: Part Two
Emma Goerger and Tezra Rudzitis followed in the footsteps of junior Lauren Galvin as selections to the seven-player Summit League All-Freshman Team last season. Goerger was one of four Toms to play in all 30 matches and ranked ninth in the league with 0.97 blocks per set and 24th with 2.67 points per set. She had 101 total blocks and 195 total kills. Rudzitis played in 28 matches with 21 starts and was second for St. Thomas with 2.07 kills per set (190 total kills).
Follow Along
For more information on St. Thomas Volleyball, follow along on X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram at @tommievball
Join Us
To reserve your seat to be a part of the Tommies' 2023 season, click HERE to view ticketing information and purchase options.
-- St. Thomas Athletics --
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/ VolleyballSt. Thomas Volleyball 2023 Intro Video
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