The Gophers' Big Three
Minnesota, 26-6 overall and ranked 10th nationally, are led by three All-Big Ten Conference selections with sophomores Lauren Gibbemeyer and Brook Dieter and junior Christine Tan
Lauren Gibbemeyer
6-foot-2 sophomore hitter
St. Paul (Cretin-DerhamHall)
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- Ranks 13th nationally in blocks per set (1.42).
- "She's probably our most competitive player," said Minnesota coach Mike Hebert. "She goes up against offensively and defensively the opponents' best players."
- "She is a very similar player to our Chrissy Knuth," said NDSU coach Erich Hinterstocker. "She is definitely going to hit some sharp, fast angles."
Brook Dieter
6-foot-1 sophomore hitter
Bloomington (Kennedy)
- Second on the team in kills to Gibbemeyer, Dieter has missed the last four matches with a severely sprained ankle.
- "It's unlikely that she will play against North Dakota State," Hebert said. "We play differently without her but we have still won."
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- "She definitely brings another dimension to their offense," Hinterstocker said. "She is their best offensive weapon in my opinion."
Christine Tan
5-foot-4 junior libero
Palm Harbor, Fla.
- Ranks 30th nationally in digs per set (4.91).
- "She comes from a volleyball family that played on the beach every day," Hebert said. "She is a fearless defender who reads the court extremely well."
- "The advantage she has is the amount of court she can cover," Hinterstocker said. "She can go
and get the ball. She has a lot of nice range."
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The Bison's Big Three Keys
North Dakota State, 24-3 overall and riding a 19-match winning streak, needs to fullfill three parts
of its game to have a chance at upsetting Minnesota, according to coach Erich Hinterstocker
1. Quality first touch
- "Our location on passing and digging and serving as well will be critical," Hinterstocker said. "We need a good first touch to give us more options offensively."
2. Offensive tempo
- "We need to counteract their
size with some speed," Hinterstocker said. "Obviously, in order to be fast you've got to be able to control the ball."
3. Aggressive defense
- "We need to have an offensive mindset on defense," Hinterstocker said. "We need to earn points at the net blocking. We have to turn defensive chances into points."
