College athletes finding success

Southwest Minnesota State University (2-2, 0-0 NSIC South) opens NSIC South Division play on Saturday, Sept. 30, hosting No. 7-ranked University of Sioux Falls (4-0, 0-0 NSIC South) starting at 5 p.m. at Mattke Field at the Schwan’s Regional Event Center.

Saturday's game is Homecoming for SMSU and SMSU will be looking to snap a five-game losing streak to USF since the Cougars joined the NSIC in 2012.

Minneota’s Isaac Josephson is a member of the linebacking squad at USF, which is 4-0 and ranks first in NCAA Division II rushing defense and sacks and second in scoring defense and total defense.

They are also ranked No. 7 in the American College Football Association (AFCA). They have beaten Minnesota Duluth; Northern State; U-Mary and Minnesota-Crookston.

Josephson plays on special teams and also is used as a linebacker by USF.

•USF ranks first in Division II in points allowed (5.2), second in total defense (185.8) and second in rush defense (28.8).

•USF has allowed just 21 points in four games.

Mustang volleyball still ranked No. 1

No. 1 Southwest Minnesota State remains the nation’s top ranked Division II volleyball team according to the latest American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Top-25 Poll that was released on Monday afternoon.

The Mustangs (13-0) are off to the best start in school history and are in the midst of a 13-match winning streak which is the fourth longest win streak in the program’s history.

SMSU is now ranked No. 1 for a third straight week after taking over the top spot in the Sept. 11 coaches’ poll. SMSU garnered 47 first place votes in this week’s poll coming off of a 2-0 weekend with road NSIC wins over Bemidji State and Minnesota-Crookston.

The Mustangs swept a second straight match with a 25-9, 25-20, 25-20 sweep on Saturday afternoon in the Lysaker Gymnasium. Taylor Reiss finished with 15 kills and six digs.

Setter, Megan Larson, had 45 assists while adding four kills and nine digs for SMSU. No. 2 Concordia-St. Paul (12-1) and No. 6 (12-1) Minnesota Duluth were the only other NSIC schools to crack this week’s top-10.

The Mustangs have now been ranked in the Top 25 for 152 consecutive polls, dating back to Sept. 5, 2006, and have made it into the Top 10 for 56 consecutive polls.

Southwest Minnesota State will host a pair of NSIC matches this weekend beginning with a match against St. Cloud State on Friday night at 6 p.m., followed by Minnesota Duluth on Saturday at 2 p.m., in the PE Gym.

Isaac Josephson

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