Mayville St. kicking tires on DIII

Mayville State University, located in Mayville, N.D., is among three institutions officially entering the exploratory phase of NCAA Division III membership. The NCAA typically requires an exploratory year before embarking on the traditional three-year provisional path toward becoming a full Division III member.

Joining Mayville St., which currently plays in the NAIA’s North Star Athletic Association, in this latest crop of DIII exploratory schools are Regent (Va.) and Johnson & Wales (N.C.).

Mayville St. would become the lone Division III member located in North Dakota and presumably compete in Region IX. Courting an offer from the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference appears to be the likeliest of options should Mayville St. continue through the process of transitioning from the NAIA to DIII. Starting in 2024-25, institutions wishing to join Division III are required to have an invitation from an active multisport conference in order to move on to the provisional stages.

Not all institutions proceed past the exploratory year. Bob Jones University (S.C.) is a recent example of a school forgoing the provisional process. However, most schools that move from exploratory ($1,000 NCAA fee) to provisional ($40,000 fee) matriculate to full members.

-Ricky Nelson

Susak elevated to head gig at MSOE

Kristina Susak is the new head coach at Milwaukee School of Engineering. Susak was an MSOE assistant coach last season.

-Ricky Nelson

Scully named head coach of Lady Blues

Claire Scully is the new head coach at Illinois College. Scully was most recently an assistant coach at Washington College (Md.).

-Ricky Nelson

Kofie to lead Stars

Olivia Kofie is the new head coach at Dominican. Kofie was most recently an assistant coach at Chicago State.

-Ricky Nelson

Hughes takes over Foresters

Melanie Hughes is the new head coach at Lake Forest. Hughes was most recently an assistant coach at Claremont-Mudd-Scripps.

-Ricky Nelson

2023 NCAA stats: Final leaders

Below are the Region VIII/IX players and teams in the final top 10 in each stat category. National leaders not from Regions VIII/IX are in italics.

Aces/Set
1. Max Ludlow, Vermont State Johnson 1.12
1. Juniata 3.55

Total Aces
1. Max Ludlow, Vermont State Johnson 100
6. Kailee Itzenhuiser, Millikin 84
1. Juniata 394

Assists/Set
1. Olivia Foley, Juniata 11.18
3. Hannah Joseph, Aurora 11.16
5. Grace Ward, Transylvania 11.02
7. Sam Buckley, Washington-St. Louis 10.44
8. Jasmine Butler, Mount St. Joseph 10.32
9. Kasie Tweet, Gustavus Adolphus 10.29
1. Claremont-Mudd-Scripps 13.64
4. Wisconsin-Oshkosh 12.95
5. St. Olaf 12.90
6. Transylvania 12.89

Total Assists
1. Lauren Lee, Hope 1,430
2. Grace Ward, Transylvania 1,345
3. Sam Buckley, Washington-St. Louis 1,284
6. Kasie Tweet, Gustavus Adolphus 1,214
6. Kaia Lill, Concordia (Minn.) 1,004
8. Hannah Joseph, Aurora 1,205
8. Grace Michalske, Wisconsin-Stevens Point 1,205
1. Wisconsin-Oshkosh 1,761
4. Northwestern 1,623
5. Transylvania 1,572
6. Millikin 1,555
8. Washington-St. Louis 1,526
10. St. Olaf 1,522

Blocks/Set
1. Kirsten Anderson, Wisconsin-Whitewater 1.42
9. Abbey Falk, Edgewood 1.21
1. Wisconsin-Whitewater 2.75

Total Blocks
1. Hannah Haerer, Covenant 165
2. Kirsten Anderson, Wisconsin-Whitewater 163
6. Marley Aune, Northwestern 136
6. Abbey Falk, Edgewood 136
1. NYU 341
2. Wisconsin-Whitewater 316.5
5. Northwestern 291
7. Wisconsin-Oshkosh 265
8. Edgewood 264.5

Digs/Set
1. Morgan Nix, LeTourneau 7.21
3. Lily Ebright, Rose-Hulman 6.74
4. Jenna Rubbelke, Hamline 6.50
1. Texas Lutheran 21.72
6. Wisconsin-Superior 20.22

Total Digs
1. Morgan Nix, LeTourneau 757
5. Lily Ebright, Rose-Hulman 681
7. Marylyn Schroyer, Northwestern 655
9. Selena Rodriguez, St. Olaf 632
1. Wisconsin-Oshkosh 2,421
6. Dubuque 2,300
6. Northwestern 2,300
9. Gustavus Adolphus 2,284

Hitting Percentage
1. Darian Dildy, Stevenson .426
1. Juniata .295
3. Northwestern .278
5. Transylvania .254

Kills/Set
1. Taylor McInerney, Lebanon Valley 5.91
4. Taylor French, Illinois Wesleyan 4.79
7. Ashley Kopp, Wisconsin-Stevens Point 4.67
1. Claremont-Mudd-Scripps 14.63
4. Wisconsin-Oshkosh 13.90
5. Transylvania 13.83
7. St. Olaf 13.71
9. Northwestern 13.61

Total Kills
1. Ashley Kopp, Wisconsin-Stevens Point 593
3. Taylor French, Illinois Wesleyan 570
4. Abby Glanzer, Northwestern 546
1. Wisconsin-Oshkosh 1,891
3. Northwestern 1,797
5. Transylvania 1,687
7. Millikin 1,654

Opponent Hitting Percentage
1. Covenant .070

Points/Set
1. Taylor McInerney, Lebanon Valley 6.30
4. Taylor French, Illinois Wesleyan 5.36
6. Ashley Kopp, Wisconsin-Stevens Point 5.26

Total Points
1. Ashley Kopp, Wisconsin-Stevens Point 667.5
2. Abby Glanzer, Northwestern 639
3. Taylor French, Illinois Wesleyan 637.5
9. Kailee Itzenhuiser, Millikin 560.5
10. Jenna Weinfurt, Wisconsin-Whitewater 538

Triple-Doubles
1. Sloan Martin, North Carolina Wesleyan 9
5. Abigail Hoffmann, Edgewood 6
10. Jillian Gregg, Rose-Hulman 4
10. Grace Kieselhorst, Martin Luther 4
10. Emerson Kracht, Wartburg 4

Winning Percentage
1. Juniata 1.000
2. Wisconsin-Oshkosh .949
10. Mount St. Joseph .889

-Ricky Nelson

Plunkett new leader at Wheaton

Eric Plunkett is now the head coach at Wheaton (Ill.). Plunkett was most recently the head coach at Gardner-Webb.

-Ricky Nelson

Lawson to lead Maranatha

Lindsay Lawson is the new head coach at Maranatha Baptist. Lawson previously coached high school for nine seasons.

-Ricky Nelson

Defiance names new coach ahead of NAIA transition

Jeremy Thornburg is the new head coach at Defiance, which is leaving Division III for the NAIA in 2024. Thornburg was most recently a coach at the Team Pineapple Volleyball Club.

-Ricky Nelson

Ray heads north to Marian

Noah Ray is the new head coach at Marian. Ray was the head coach at Birmingham-Southern until mid-October.

-Ricky Nelson