Valley City State's Sadie Hansen and Delani Clarke have each been named North Star Athletic Association Volleyball Players of the Week, the conference office announced today. Hansen was chosen as the Setter of the Week for the second time this season, while teammate Delani Clarke earned her first career the Defender of the Week honor. Eve Fountain of Bellevue was selected as the Attacker of the Week for the second straight week. 

NSAA Volleyball Setter-of-the-Week
Sadie Hansen – Valley City State (N.D.) – 5'10", Senior, setter – Oakes, N.D. – Hansen posted 10.2 set assists per set as No. 22 Valley City State went 3-1 at the Siouxland Invitational.  She recorded two double-doubles on the week, including a season-high 50 assists and 18 digs in 3-1 victory over Briar Cliff (Iowa).  Hansen totaled 153 set assists, 45 digs (3.0 digs per set), and 21 kills (1.4 kills per set) in the tournament for the Vikings.  She also had three blocks and a service ace.

NSAA Volleyball Defender-of-the-Week
Delani Clarke – Valley City State (N.D.) – 5'5", Junior, defensive specialist – Bismarck, N.D. – Clarke totaled 105 digs as No. 22 Valley City State went 3-1 in the Siouxland Invitational.  She averaged 7.0 digs per set.  Clarke opened the tournament by tying a career-high 26 digs, despite a 3-0 setback to (RV) McPherson (Kan.).  She then followed up with a new career high 40 digs as VCSU defeated Briar Cliff (Iowa). Clarke contributed 15 set assists and four service aces in the tournament.
 
NSAA Volleyball Attacker-of-the-Week
Eve Fountain – Bellevue (Neb.) – 5'9", Junior, outside hitter – Omaha, Neb. – Fountain hit .400 for the week and had impressive performances in two sweeps at the College of Saint Mary (Neb.) Labor Day Classic, fueling No. 14 ranked Bellevue (Neb.) to a 3-0 record in the tournament.  She recorded 12 kills and hit .435 as the Bruins swept No. 4 and previously undefeated Concordia (Neb.) 3-0.  She also had 12 kills and hit .364 in 3-0 BU's victory over St. Francis (Ind.).  For the week, Fountain averaged 4.0 kills (24 total kills), 2.3 digs (14 total digs), and 1.3 blocks per set. 

Recap from last week's action
Jamestown (N.D.), ranked No. 9 in the NAIA Women's Volleyball Coaches' Top 25 Preseason Poll, opened their 2024 season with a 4-0 record in the Siouxland Invitational in North Sioux City, S.D.  The Jimmies earned a pair of victories on Aug. 30, sweeping (RV) Morningside (Iowa) in three straight sets and (RV) McPherson (Kan.) in four sets.  UJ earned a pair of sweeps over (RV) Benedictine (Kan.) and (RV) St. Ambrose (Iowa) on Aug. 31.

No. 22 Valley City State (N.D.) and (RV) Dakota State (S.D.) each recorded a 3-1 record in the Siouxland Invitational.  After a 3-0 setback to McPherson on Aug. 30, the Vikings defeated Briar Cliff (Iowa) in four sets on the same day.  VCSU earned a pair of wins on Aug. 31, holding off Dordt (Iowa) in five sets and sweeping Haskell (Kan.) in three sets.  Valley City State is 5-3 overall record this season.

(RV) Dakota State fell short to Morningside in four sets on Aug. 28.  The Trojans opened the Siouxland Invitational with a 3-0 sweep over York (Neb.) before falling to Benedictine in five sets on Aug. 30.  DaSU earned a pair of 3-0 victories on Aug. 31, defeating Haskell 3-0 and McPherson 3-0.

Dickinson State (N.D.) went 1-3 record in the Siouxland Invitational.  The Blue Hawks fell short to Dakota Wesleyan (S.D.) in five sets and earned a 3-1 victory over St. Ambrose on Aug. 30.  DiSU dropped a pair of matches on Aug. 31, falling to Briar Cliff (Iowa) in four sets and Dordt (Iowa) in five sets.  Dickinson State is 3-5 overall record.

Mayville State (N.D.) also went 1-3 record in the same tournament.  The Comets defeated Briar Cliff 3-1 on Aug. 30 before falling to Dordt in five sets.  MSU lost to Dakota Wesleyan in four sets and Morningside in three straight sets on Aug. 31.  Mayville State is 2-4 record on the season.

Bellevue (Neb.), ranked No. 14 in national  poll, went undefeated 3-0 record in the College of Saint Mary's (Neb.) Labor Day Classic in Omaha, Neb.  The Bruins earned a pair of 3-0 sweeps on Aug. 30, defeating St. Francis (Ind.) and No. 4 ranked Concordia (Neb.).  BU added a 3-1 victory over Mount Mercy (Iowa) on Aug. 31 to raise their overall record to 7-2.

Looking Ahead
No. 14 ranked Bellevue (Neb.) plays its lone match of the week, visiting Peru State (Neb.) on Wednesday evening.

No. 9 Jamestown (N.D.), No. 22 Valley City State (N.D.), and (RV) Dakota State (S.D.) will play in the Viterbo (Wis.) Tournament in La Crosse, Wis., this weekend.  The Jimmies take on Judson (Ill.) at 12 p.m. and host-team No. 5 ranked Viterbo at 6 p.m. on Friday.  Dakota State will play Judson at 3 p.m.

The Trojans play the V-Hawks Saturday morning at 10 a.m., while Valley City State plays Judson at 12 p.m. and Viterbo at 3 p.m.

Dickinson State (N.D.) and Mayville State (N.D.) will be idle this week.

            Wednesday's Match
            (14) Bellevue (Neb.) @ Peru State (Neb.) – 7 p.m.

            Friday's Matches
            Viterbo (Wis.) Tournament – La Crosse, Wis.
                        (9) Jamestown (N.D.) vs. Judson (Ill.) – 12 p.m.
                        (RV) Dakota State (S.D.) vs. Judson (Ill.) – 3 p.m.
                        (9) Jamestown (N.D.) @ (5) Viterbo (Wis.) – 6 p.m.

            Saturday's Matches
            Viterbo (Wis.) Tournament – La Crosse, Wis.
                        (RV) Dakota State (S.D.) @ (5) Viterbo (Wis.) – 10 a.m.
                        (22) Valley City State (N.D.) vs. Judson (Ill.) – 12 p.m.
                        (22) Valey City State (N.D.) @ (5) Viterbo (Wis.) – 2 p.m.

NSAA Volleyball Standings
 

School	Overall Record	NSAA Record	Games Behind	Streak
(9) Jamestown (N.D.)	4-0	0-0	-----	Won 4
(14) Bellevue (Neb.)	7-2	0-0	-----	Won 3
(22) Valley City State (N.D.)	5-3	0-0	-----	Won 3
(RV) Dakota State (S.D.)	6-4	0-0	-----	Won 2
Mayville State (N.D.)	2-4	0-0	-----	Lost 3
Dickinson State (N.D.)	3-5	0-0	----	Lost 2