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Home Sweet Home: After six straight road games, including a trip to Spokane, Wash., the Blazers head back home to face off against St. Scholastica for the second time this season. The Blazers come into the match with a perfect 10-0 record, while the Saints counter with a 3-5 mark after a disappointing early schedule. In four games at home this season the Blazers are 4-0 – all at the CSB Labor Day Tournament – while the Saints have yet to win a true road game, coming in 0-2. First serve is set for 3 p.m., Sept. 14 in Claire Lynch Hall.
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About the Saints: Sitting at 3-5 on the year, Saint Scholastica comes to St. Joe fresh off a win its last time out, taking down Whitman for third place honors at the Whit Classic last weekend. The Saints opened the season with two wins over MIAC teams, sweeping Macalester before beating Carleton in four. They come into the match with a team attack percentage of just .126, but allow their opponents only slightly more at .152. Led by 17th year head coach Dana Moore the Saints entered the year off a 17-13 overall mark in 2012, which included a second place finish in the UMAC at 11-3.
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Last Time: The two teams have met frequently in recent years, including just last week at the Whit Classic. On Sept. 6, the Blazers took a 25-12, 25-18, 25-20 sweep to move to 6-0 on the year. They hit .282 in the match – the second best against the Saints all year – while holding the Saints to .130, at the time their lowest total of the season.
Lexi Rinde (Minnetonka, Minn.) led the way with 12 kills in the match, hitting .500 on along the way, while
Lexi Alm (Forest Lake, Minn.) added another 10 kills.
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The Storyline: With another win down, the Blazers remain undefeated. They did suffer their first set loss of the season, but with their 3-1 win over Northwestern, they have still won 30 of their 29 sets this year. The Blazers look to knock down another win against a team they have already beat 3-0 this season to give them an 11-game winning streak going into their five consecutive MIAC matchups.
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Who to Watch: Currently leading the MIAC with a record of 10-0, the Blazers have had very much early success both as a team and individually. As a team, the Blazers are first in the MIAC in team hitting percentage at .264. They are also two assists behind the first place spot with 409 on the season, and they are second in kills with 436, just four kills out of first place. Individually,
Taya Kockelman (Minneota, Minn.) is second place in the conference right now with 11.36 assists per set and Rinde holds the third place spot in hitting percentage with .357. Alm leads the team in kills right now with 91 as Rinde is right behind her with 88.
Chelsea Rachel (Maple Lake, Minn.) is the team's defensive leader with 108 digs on the season.
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Last Time Out: In their last time out, the Blazers lost their first set of the season in their 3-1 win over Northwestern. In the first set, the Blazers fought hard and came back from a 12-5 deficit for the 25-20 win. The Eagles came out strong in the second set, and walked away with a win by a score of 25-21. In the third set, the Blazers jumped out to a 16-6 lead and kept a 10-point lead until the end of the set, taking the 25-15 win. In the fourth and final set, the Blazers were tied for most of the first half until they went on a 7-0 run to take an 18-12 lead. From there, the Blazers thwarted an Eagle comeback to take the 25-22 win.