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Sara Horn Named Mustangs' New Head Coach
Mustangs Break One School Record During 2010 Campaign
Four Mustangs Receive Scholar-Athlete Honor
Sutherland Named To All-GPAC First-Team
Iverson Receives GPAC Setter Honor
Downing Named To Academic All-District Team
Sutherland Is NAIA National Player Of The Week
Mustang Duo Receive Weekly GPAC Honors
Iverson Is GPAC Setter Of The Week
Mustangs Ranked 18th In NAIA Pre-Season Poll
Mustangs 2nd In GPAC Pre-Season Poll
 Liz Sutherland, a 6-2 junior middle blocker from Sioux City, has been named to the honorable mention list of the 2010 Tachikara-NAIA All-America Volleyball Team.
Sutherland led the Mustangs with 330 kills this season for an average of 2.84 kills per game. She also topped the team with a .377 hitting percentage and with 45 solo blocks and 72 block assists for an average of 1.01 blocks per game.
Sutherland led the Mustangs with 12 double figure kill performances, including a season’s high 20 kills in a 3-2 loss against Nebraska Wesleyan University on Sept. 29 for the Mustangs’ top individual kill total of the season. Her .377 hitting percentage was the third highest single-season mark in Morningside history. Her 45 solo blocks was the eighth highest single-season total in Morningside history and her average of 1.01 blocks per game ranked 10th among the Mustangs’ single-season bests.
She moved into eighth place in the Mustangs’ record book with 89 career solo blocks. Sutherland’s .357 career hitting percentage is the second best mark in Morningside history and she ranks third with a career average of 1.00 blocks per game.
Morningside posted a 17-16 record this season to finish with a winning record for the ninth year in a row.
Click here for the complete 2010 Tachikara- NAIA All-America Volleyball Team.
 Sara Horn has been named the new head volleyball coach at Morningside College announced Mustangs’ athletic director Jerry Schmutte.
Horn was the head coach at Iowa Central Community College for the past two seasons. This past season she guided the Tritons to a 22-17 record and a berth in the National Junior College Athletic Association Region 11 Semifinals.
She replaces former Mustang head coach Rick Pruett, who resigned following the completion of the 2010 season.
Prior to coaching at Iowa Central, Horn was the head coach for one year at Millard North High School in Nebraska and was an assistant coach for three seasons at Wayne State College, where she earned her master’s degree. Horn is a 2004 graduate of the University of Nebraska, where she was a three-year letterwinner for the Cornhuskers.
Horn guided Millard North to a 24-8 record, a No. 6 state ranking, and a state tournament appearance during the 2008 season. While at Wayne State, Horn helped lead the Wildcats to a three-year record of 79-20 and to three NCAA Division II tournament appearances.
“I am excited to have Sara Horn on board as our new head volleyball coach,” Schmutte said. “During the interview process she was selected over a number of good candidates. I think she will do a great job for us.”
Horn takes over a Morningside volleyball program that has put together nine consecutive winning seasons, including a 17-16 mark this past fall. The Mustangs were NAIA National Tournament participants in 2008 and 2009.
“I am very excited about the opportunity to coach at Morningside,” Horn said. “Morningside is a great school with great athletic programs. The volleyball program has been very successful in the past. I hope to be able to continue that success and to help Morningside return to the national tournament.”
While at Nebraska, Horn earned First-Team Academic All-Big 12 honors in 2002 and 2003 and was a Second-Team Academic All-Big 12 selection in 2001. She helped lead Nebraska to Big 12 championships in 2001 and 2002 and a NCAA Final Four appearance in 2001. As a senior, Horn ranked third in the Big 12 with an average of 1.26 blocks per game and was fifth in the league with a .317 hitting percentage.
She originally attended the University of Pacific, where she averaged 0.79 kills per game as a freshman.
Horn was a three-time all-stater during her prep career at Lincoln Northeast High School and was the honorary captain of the Lincoln Journal-Star’s 1998 all-state squad. She led the Rockets to a 35-1 record and the 1998 Nebraska Class A state championship and established Nebraska state records for career kills and kills per game.
 Four Morningside volleyball players have been named Daktronics-NAIA Scholar-Athletes.
Morningside’s volleyball Daktronics-NAIA Scholar-Athletes are:
Kaeli Austin, a junior outside hitter from Sioux City. Austin has a 3.87 cumulative grade point average (GPA) with majors in elementary education and special education.
Erin Downing, a senior outside hitter from Ottumwa, Iowa. Downing has a 3.99 cumulative GPA with majors in elementary education and special education.
Leah Nielsen, a junior defensive specialist from Sergeant Bluff, Iowa. Nielsen has a 4.00 cumulative GPA with a major in mathematics teaching.
Kayla Stehlik, a senior middle blocker from Dorchester, Neb. Stehlik has a 3.50 cumulative GPA with a major in business administration.
Student-athletes must be of at least junior academic status and have a minimum GPA of 3.50 in order to be eligible for Daktronics-NAIA Scholar-Athlete honors.
Click here for the complete list of 2010 Daktronics-NAIA Volleyball Scholar-Athletes.
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Liz Sutherland |
Monica Iverson |
Morningside College’s volleyball team posted a 17-16 record during the 2010 volleyball season to finish with a winning record for the ninth year in a row. The Mustangs finished eighth in the Great Plains Athletic Conference (GPAC) standings with a 7-9 league mark. Morningside has a 119-35 record over the last four years for a .773 winning percentage.
Morningside broke a school record for hitting percentage in a four-game match when the Mustangs attacked at a .444 clip in a 25-22, 21-25, 26-24, 25-17 victory against Black Hills State University on Sept. 11 at the Hastings College Tournament. The Mustangs broke their previous record of .412 against Grinnell College during the 2007 campaign.
Liz Sutherland, a 6-2 junior middle blocker from Sioux City, was the Mustangs’ offensive and defensive leader at the net. Sutherland, who averaged 2.84 kills per game, slammed a team-high 330 kills and led the team with a .377 hitting percentage. She also topped the Mustangs with 45 solo blocks and 72 block assists for an average of 1.01 blocks per game. Sutherland led the Mustangs with 12 double figure kill performances and had one of the Mustangs’ two top individual totals of the season with 20 kills in a 3-2 loss against Nebraska Wesleyan University on Sept. 29.
Sutherland’s .377 hitting percentage was the third highest single-season mark in Morningside history. Her 45 solo blocks was the eighth highest single-season total in Morningside history and her average of 1.01 blocks per game ranked 10th among the Mustangs’ single-season bests.
She moved into eighth place in the Mustangs’ record book with 89 career solo blocks. Sutherland’s .357 career hitting percentage is the second best mark in Morningside history and she ranks third with a career average of 1.00 blocks per game.
Monica Iverson, a 5-10 junior setter from Sioux City, led the Mustangs with 1,237 assists for an average of 10.66 per game.
Iverson raised her career total to 1,348 assists for the 10th highest total in Morningside history.
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Darcy Christensen |
Erin Downing |
Darcy Christensen, a 5-8 junior defensive specialist from Council Bluffs, Iowa, led the Mustangs with 513 digs for an average of 4.71 per game. She had the Mustangs’ top single-match total of the season with 31 digs in the Mustangs’ 3-1 triumph against Black Hills State on Sept. 11.
Erin Downing, a 5-11 senior outside hitter from Ottumwa, Iowa, led the Mustangs in ace serves with 34 for an average of 0.34 aces per game. Downing averaged 2.41 kills per game and ranked second on the team with a .284 hitting percentage.
Kaeli Austin, a 5-10 junior outside hitter from Sioux City, had one of the Mustangs’ two top individual kill performances of the season when she had 20 terminations in the Mustangs’ 3-2 loss against Nebraska Wesleyan on Sept. 29. Austin had 322 kills for the season and led the Mustangs with an average of 2.88 kills per game.
Riley Callan, a 5-9 junior outside hitter from Ord, Neb., amassed 294 digs for an average of 2.53 per game to lead the Mustangs’ non-liberos. Callan ranked second on the team with 26 ace serves and had the Mustangs’ top single-match performance of the season with five aces in a 3-1 loss against nationally ranked Taylor University on Aug. 27 at the Northwestern College Red Raider Classic.
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Liz Sutherland |
Erin Downing |
Liz Sutherland, a 6-2 junior middle blocker from Sioux City, has been named to the All-Great Plains Athletic Conference (GPAC) Volleyball First-Team as selected by the league’s head coaches.
In addition to Sutherland, the Mustangs’ Erin Downing, a 5-11 senior outside hitter from Ottumwa, Iowa, was named to the All-GPAC Second-Team and two other Mustang players were named to the All-GPAC honorable mention list.
Sutherland led the Mustangs with 330 kills this season for an average of 2.84 kills per game. She also topped the Mustangs with a .377 hitting percentage and was their top blocker with 45 solo blocks and 72 block assists for an average of 1.01 blocks per game.
Downing slammed 241 kills for an average of 2.41 per game and led the Mustangs with 34 ace serves for an average of 0.35 aces per game.
Darcy Christensen, a 5-8 junior defensive specialist from Council Bluffs, Iowa; and Monica Iverson, a 5-10 junior setter from Sioux City, each received honorable mention All-GPAC recognition.
Christensen amassed a team-high 513 digs for an average of 4.71 per game, while Iverson dealt 1,237 assists for an average of 10.66 per contest. Iverson also had 237 digs for an average of 2.04 per game.
Morningside posted a 17-16 record and finished eighth in the GPAC with a 7-9 league record this season.
Click here for the complete 2010 All-GPAC Volleyball Team
 Erin Downing, a 5-11 senior outside hitter from Ottumwa, Iowa, has been named to the ESPN College Division Academic All-District VII Volleyball First-Team as selected by College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA).
As a first-team all-district selection, Downing advances to the national ballot for the ESPN Academic All-America Team.
Downing has a 3.99 cumulative grade point average (GPA) with majors in elementary education and special education.
She is averaging 2.41 kills and 0.93 digs per game and is the Mustangs’ team leader with 34 ace serves.
Student-athletes must have achieved at least sophomore academic status, have a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.30, and be a starter or significant reserve to be eligible for ESPN All-Academic honors.
 Monica Iverson, a 5-10 junior from Sioux City, has been named the Hauff Mid-America Sports/Great Plains Athletic Conference (GPAC) Volleyball Setter of the Week for her performances last week.
Iverson helped lead the Mustangs to a pair of victories last week with a 3-0 sweep of Midland University and a 3-1 triumph against the University of Sioux Falls. She dealt 36 assists to go along with 10 digs and two ace serves in the Mustangs’ win against Midland. Iverson had 44 assists in the Mustangs’ triumph against Sioux Falls.
She averaged 11.43 assists per game for the week to raise her season’s average to 10.87 per game to rank among the NAIA national leaders.
Morningside will take a 16-14 record into its regular season finale against Nebraska Wesleyan University on Tuesday at 7:30 p.m.
 Liz Sutherland, a 6-2 junior middle blocker from Sioux city, Iowa, has been named the NAIA National Volleyball Player of the Week for her performances last week.
Sutherland averaged 4.18 kills and 1.59 blocks per game and had a .561 hitting percentage to help lead the Mustangs to victories against Concordia University, South Dakota Tech, College of Saint Mary, Southern Nazarene University, and Black Hills State University.
She started the week with a career-high 18 kills to lead the Mustangs to a 3-1 victory against Concordia in their Great Plains Athletic Conference (GPAC) opener on Sept. 7 in Seward, Neb. Sutherland followed that effort with 10 kills against South Dakota Tech, 13 against College of Saint Mary, 14 against Southern Nazarene, and 16 against Black Hills State at last weekend’s Hastings College Quality Inn Classic.
Sutherland increased her season’s average to 2.65 kills per game. She ranks among the NAIA national leaders with a hitting percentage of .409.
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Liz Sutherland |
Darcy Christensen |
Liz Sutherland, a 6-2 junior middle blocker from Sioux City, is this week’s Hauff Mid-America Sports/Great Plains Athletic Conference (GPAC) Volleyball Player of the Week and Darcy Christensen, a 5-8 junior libero from Council Bluffs, Iowa, is the Hauff Mid-America Sports/GPAC Defensive Player of the Week.
Sutherland averaged 4.18 kills and 1.59 blocks per game and had a hitting percentage of .561 to help lead the Mustangs to a 5-0 record last week.
She pounded a career-high 18 kills in the Mustangs’ GPAC opener against Concordia. Sutherland followed that effort with 10 kills against South Dakota Tech, 13 against College of Saint Mary, 14 against Southern Nazarene University, and 16 against Black Hills State University at last weekend’s Hastings College Quality Inn Classic.
Christensen averaged 7.29 digs per game in the Mustangs’ five triumphs. She had her top dig performance of the season with 31 in Morningside’s win against Black Hills State. She also had 29 digs against Concordia, 22 against Southern Nazarene, and 21 against South Dakota Tech and College of Saint Mary.
 Monica Iverson, a 5-10 junior from Sioux City, has been named the Hauff Mid-America Sports/Great Plains Athletic Conference (GPAC) Volleyball Setter of the Week for her performances at this past weekend’s Bellevue University Classic.
Iverson averaged 11.40 assists per game in addition to 2.27 digs and 1.07 kills per contest. She dealt a career-high 50 assists in a 3-1 victory against Baker University and had a career-high 11 digs in a 3-0 loss against 17th-ranked Bellevue.
Morningside, ranked 18th nationally in the NAIA Pre-Season Poll, went 2-2 at the Bellevue Classic and will take a 5-5 record into Tuesday’s GPAC opener against Concordia University in Seward, Neb.
 Morningside College is ranked 18th nationally in the 2010 NAIA Pre-Season Volleyball Poll.
The Mustangs are coming off a 2009 season where they finished 32-9 and made their second consecutive appearance in the NAIA Volleyball National Championships. Morningside will open the season this Saturday with matches against Valley City State University and Waldorf College in a triangular at Forest City, Iowa.
Morningside is one of three teams from the Great Plains Athletic Conference (GPAC) ranked in the NAIA Top 25. Northwestern College is ranked fifth and Doane College is ranked 20th.
Click here for the complete NAIA Pre-Season Top 25.
 Morningside College is picked second in the GPAC Volleyball Coaches Pre-Season Poll released Monday, Aug. 9.
The Mustangs are coming off a banner 2009 season where they posted a 32-9 record and made their second consecutive appearance in the NAIA Volleyball National Championships.
The Mustangs return nine letterwinners, including three starters, from last year’s team. Morningside will open the season with matches against South Dakota Tech and Waldorf College on Saturday, Aug. 21, in Forest City, Iowa.
Morningside has a 102-19 record for a .843 winning percentage over the past three seasons.
1.Northwestern, 121 points (11 1st place votes); 2.Morningside, 101; 3.Doane, 97; 4.Dordt (1) 96; 5.Hastings, 85; 6.Nebraska Wesleyan, 68; 7.Midland Lutheran, 55; 8.Briar Cliff, 54; 9.Sioux Falls, 49; 10.Concordia, 32; 11.Dakota Wesleyan, 23; 12.Mount Marty, 11.
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