Playoff Opener: After cruising through the second half of the season, and winning 13 of their last 14 games of the season, the Saint Benedict volleyball team has successfully built up momentum heading to the MIAC Tournament. During the streak, the Blazers have climbed the rankings and currently sit at No. 7 in the nation. The Blazers (24-2, 9-2 MIAC) will use this momentum tomorrow (Nov. 5) in the first round of the MIAC Tournament where they will host Hamline (19-12, 6-5 MIAC) at 7 p.m. in Clair Lynch Hall.

Tickets: Tickets are $7.00 for adults and $3.00 for students. With the support of CSB Senate,  matched by Blazer Athletics, the first 100 students will get in free.
 
About the Pipers: With a record of 19-12, the Pipers have also had some success in the last stretch of this season. They are coming into the game with a four-match winning streak and have won seven of their past nine games. The Pipers also have a conference record of 6-5 and an away record of 4-4 as they hit the road for the ninth time this season. They have some momentum built up and look to use it despite hovering around .500 in both conference and road games.
 
Last Matchup: The Blazers came out on top in the last match between these two teams, less than two weeks ago. Although they kept most of the sets close, the Blazers left the Pipers' court with a 3-1 win. Starting the night off with a 25-13 win in the first set, the Blazers then suffered a 25-21 set loss in the second, but came back with 25-17 and 29-27 wins to finish the match. The Blazers had a great game offensively against the Pipers and racked up 64 kills as a team with four different players breaking the 10 kills mark. Lexi Rinde (Minnetonka, Minn.) led the team with 19 kills while Lexi Alm (Stacy, Minn.) and Sophie Stangl (Buffalo, Minn.) added 13 and 12 respectively. Mary Franz (Broomfield, Colo.) also continued her offensive success with 10 more kills.
 
The Storyline: With the momentum of 10 straight wins and a conference record of 9-2, the Blazers head into this game with a lot of confidence. They have also been solid at home with a record of 10-1 this season in Claire Lynch Hall. As the Pipers have stayed about average on the road and in the MIAC, they will be fighting hard to keep their season alive and walk into this match with hopes of extending their winning streak.
 
Who to Watch: With 1,265 career kills, Alm has reached fifth place in the Blazers all-time kills list and continues her defensive success with 288 digs this season, which is second only to Chelsea Rachel (Maple Lake, Minn.). Rachel has led the team defensively all season and is averaging 3.94 digs per set, and also sits at fourth in the MIAC with 0.46 service aces per set. Rinde leads the team in both kills and hitting percentage with marks of 295 and a .344 respectively. She is also just five kills away form 1,000 in her career.

Lexi Alm	Chelsea Rachel	Lexi Rinde

 
Last Time Out: In their last time out, the Blazers faced off against Macalester and walked away with a 3-1 win. After losing the first set 20-25, the Blazers came back with 25-15 and 25-16 wins in the second and third respectively. They went on to finish the match with a 25-22 win in the fourth set to close the regular season with 10 straight wins. Alm and Rinde both finished the night with 14 kills, with Stangl adding another 11 kills and six blocks. Defensively, Victoria Nass (Faribault, Minn.) led the team with 16 digs as the Blazer's defense held Macalester to a team hitting percentage of just .150.