CHADRON, Neb. – After concluding a four-match, three-state road trip, Chadron State volleyball will return home to the Chicoine Center for an extended stretch, with the Eagles playing five of their next six matches in Chadron starting this weekend.

The Eagles (4-12, 1-5 RMAC) do have a daunting task to open the homestand, facing No. 12-ranked MSU Denver (13-3, 5-1 RMAC) on Friday night at 6 p.m. before taking on UCCS (14-2, 5-1 RMAC) the following day at 6 p.m.

MSU Denver, currently riding a streak of four straight RMAC regular season titles and 24 consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances, will enter Saturday on a four-match winning streak, all of which have been sweeps. Chadron State took a set from the Roadrunners last season in the Chicoine Center, making CSC one of only four RMAC conference games that MSU Denver did not sweep last season.

UCCS is looking to make a statement this season, as the Mountain Lions went 8-0 in nonconference play before knocking off perennial conference contenders Colorado School of Mines and Colorado Mesa so far.
Both matches will be streamed on the RMAC Network and can be accessed with a game pass, monthly subscription or annual subscription. Live statistics are also available online.

Promotional Notes
The volleyball program will be using both match nights to raise awareness for important causes. 

Friday's match is Mental Health Awareness Night, where the program will be promoting and recognizing mental health counselors and other resources on campus. 

Saturday is the annual Dig Pink game. Fans and students are encouraged to pack the gym and wear pink to promote cancer awareness. The volleyball program will be selling T-shirts in the Student Center on campus on Thursday, with proceeds going towards Circle of Light, a non-profit associated with Chadron Community Hospital that helps with financial stress on cancer patients and their families.

RMAC Network Update
All RMAC matches will be livestreamed on the RMAC Network. Beginning in 2025-26, the RMAC Network has moved to a pay-per-view subscription system for all regular season and postseason RMAC contests. 

Fans have multiple subscription choices to choose from: $10 for a single game (access for 24 hours) or $25 for a monthly subscription and $130 for an annual subscription (monthly and annual subscribers have access to all games, regardless of school or sport, broadcasted on the RMAC Network). 

Any CSC staff, faculty or students with a csc.edu or eagles.csc.edu email address are eligible for $10 off an annual subscription under the RMAC's EDU Peak Pricing Promotion. With the discount, an RMAC institutional community member can purchase a yearly subscription for $120, which is more than half off a monthly subscription of the same length.

To purchase subscriptions, visit rmacnetwork.com/purchase. Revenue generated by the network will be redistributed to the league's membership to enhance their broadcast systems.

Fans will technical support issues can contact Hudl, visit the RMAC email the RMAC Network FAQ page, or directly email the RMAC at rmac@rmacsports.org.

Looking Back
Chadron State completed a grueling road trip to southern Colorado and New Mexico last weekend, losing in four sets to Adams State on Friday and in three sets to New Mexico Highlands Saturday.

RECAPS: Adams State | New Mexico Highlands

Chadron State lost by the slimmest of margins against the Grizzlies Friday, winning the first set and then losing the next three by the minimum two points, coming up short 21-25, 27-25, 25-23, 26-24. Mataya Ward had 12 kills while Bella Adams added nine kills and six blocks, including three solo swats. 

Against the Cowgirls, the Eagles fell 25-22, 25-20, 25-22, hitting only .186 for the match. A total of 14 different players appeared in the match against New Mexico Highlands.

No Sets Off
After setter Jillian Donovan missed the third set of Saturday's match against Highlands, only one CSC player has now appeared in every set and started every match – newcomer Gibson Beckler. A native of Conway, Missouri who transferred to CSC from Missouri State-West Plains, Beckler entered the starting lineup immediately and hasn't left. 

Beckler has been a well-rounded player for the Eagles, as she ranks top five on the team in kills (second, 126), digs (second, 171), aces (second, 10), assists (third, 18) and blocks (fifth, 17), the only member of the team to be in the top five of all five major categories. 

Beckler's digs per set (3.11) and attacks per set (8.05) both rank 16^th in the RMAC. She has tallied double-digit digs nine times and double-digit kills three times, including an explosive 23-kill, 19 dig performance in a five-set loss to Black Hills State. 

Senior captain Bella Adams has also appeared in all 55 of CSC's sets this season but has started 15 of 16 matches. Beckler, Donovan and libero Avery Lacy are the only Eagles to be in the starting lineup for every match thus far in 2025.

Other Eagles who have appeared in most, but not quite all, of CSC's 55 sets this season are Kally Kirkwood (54 sets played), Shelby Harding (54), Lacy (53) and Josie Loosvelt (53). 

Eskew Debut
Casper, Wyoming native Cydnie Eskew appeared in her first game action as an Eagle last weekend, as the redshirt sophomore made her collegiate debut against New Mexico Highlands.

In two sets against the Cowgirls, Eskew had a team-high nine assists alongside three digs and a service ace. She also attacked six times, ended up with two kills and no errors for a .333 hitting percentage. 

Eskew became the first player other than Donovan to lead the Eagles in assists during a match in 2025.

Stat Standouts

• Mataya Ward ranks seventh in the RMAC with 3.32 kills/set. 
• Jillian Donovan ranks fourth in the RMAC with 9.13 assists/set, and second with 493 total assists. 
• Shelby Harding ranks second in the RMAC with 23 total aces and 0.43 aces/set. 
• As a team, Chadron State ranks 11^th in kills (11.76/set), 11^th in hitting percentage (.187), 11^th in blocks (1.55/set), and fifth in digs (15.91/set). 

Big Numbers
Chadron State has authored some of the top team and individual single-match performances in the RMAC this season.

The Eagles have the fourth-best and fifth-best single-match team hitting percentages of the season in the conference after hitting .378 in a September 6 win over Mary and .375 in a three-set win over Western Colorado. 

In a five-set win over Black Hills State, the Eagles totaled 97 digs, which are the third-most in any match and the second-most in a five-set match by an RMAC team during the 2025 season. 

Individually, Avery Lacy tallied 32 digs against the Yellow Jackets, which is more than any RMAC player has had in a single match so far during the 2025 season, one ahead of South Dakota Mines's Hannah Benes, who had 31 in a September match against Missouri-St. Louis. Lacy's previous season high and career high was 20 digs, set against Upper Iowa in a three-set win on September 12 of this season.

Gibson Beckler's 23 kills against BHSU were the most by a Chadron State player in a match this season and tied for the fifth-most by an RMAC player in a match this season. Mataya Ward's 17 kills from a September 12 win over Upper Iowa are the second-most by an RMAC player this year during a three-set match.

Jillian Donovan's 56 assists during the five-set win over Black Hills State are also the third-highest single-game total in the conference while her 43 sets from the Western Colorado match are six more assists than any other setter has tallied in a three-set match. Donovan has four of the top seven marks in three-set matches this season.

Poll Update
Chadron State volleyball is projected for a 13^th-place finish in the RMAC, matching its finish in last season's standings, according to the RMAC Volleyball Preseason Coaches Poll. 

MSU Denver, who have won four straight RMAC regular season championships, is the runaway favorite to win the league this season, receiving 13 of a possible 14 first-place votes. Colorado Mesa is second in the poll, earning the final two first-place votes and 11 second-place votes. Colorado Christian, who advanced to the finals of the RMAC Tournament last season, comes in third in the preseason poll, ahead of last season's surprise third-place finishers South Dakota Mines in fourth. 

The rest of the top 10 features CSU Pueblo, Regis, Westminster, UCCS and Adams State and Colorado School of Mines in a tie for ninth. Spots 11-13 are incredibly close, with 11^th-place Fort Lewis receiving 59 points in the poll, 12^th-place Western Colorado receiving 57 and the 13^th-place Eagles receiving 55. The poll is rounded out by New Mexico Highlands and Black Hills State. 

The RMAC has just one school ranked in the AVCA/TARAFLEX Division II national women's volleyball poll – MSU Denver at No. 12. Colorado Mesa is receiving votes.

Scouting the Opponents
MSU Denver
The Roadrunners of MSU Denver were an unsurprising pick to win the RMAC this year by the league's head coaches, as MSU Denver is currently riding a streak of four straight regular season titles and 24 straight seasons with an NCAA Tournament appearance.

A four-set loss to Colorado Mesa during the first week of RMAC play has MSU Denver tied for third in the RMAC standings at 5-1 with multiple teams off to hot starts. The Roadrunners have won their last four matches, including three conference contests, all in three sets. 

MSU Denver's only loss is to No. 7 Wayne State and the Roadrunners have head-to-head wins over No. 13 West Texas A&M and No. 14 Ferris State, a big win why the Roadrunners sit at No. 12 in the nation in the latest AVCA Poll. 

Senior Annika Helf ranks fourth in the RMAC with 3.43 kills per set and has over 200 on the season. Freshman setter Karyna Werley is a unique two-way weapon, averaging 2.38 kills/set and hitting .343 while also averaging 5.5 assists per set, splitting setter duties alongside junior GabriElle Brewer (5.84 assists/set). Middle Alyssa Boyte is tied for the league lead with 1.09 blocks per set and has 63 total.

Head Coach Jenny Glenn has been at the helm for MSU Denver's run of success. Entering 2025, she is 220-50, including a 139-9 RMAC record. She has won four RMAC Coach of the Year awards and took the Roadrunners to three straight NCAA South Central Regional finals from 2021-2023.

UCCS
Picked eighth in the preseason poll, the UCCS Mountain Lions are looking like a legit contender at 14-2 overall and 5-1 in the RMAC. UCCS's only RMAC loss came to MSU Denver, but the Mountain Lions already have victories over Colorado School of Mines, South Dakota Mines and then-No. 24-ranked Colorado Mesa. 

UCCS went a perfect 8-0 in nonconference play, only dropping three sets in their eight wins while beating the likes of St. Mary's (TX), Cal State East Bay and Hawaii Pacific. They played three times in five days last week, losing in three sets to MSU Denver Tuesday but then beating South Dakota Mines in four last Friday and Black Hills State in three on Saturday.

Sophomore Payton Tompkins leads the charge on offense, ranking third in the RMAC with 3.51 kills/set (179 total). Before recording nine kills against Black Hills State, Tompkins had a streak of seven straight games with double digit kills and a .200 or better hitting percentage in all of them. 

Junior middle blocker Nicole Martin has 128 kills (2.25) but also leads the RMAC with 33 service aces (0.58/set). Martin's 33 aces are 10 more than second place in the conference, which is CSC's Shelby Harding. Martin also leads the Mountain Lions with 58 blocks, ranking eighth in blocks/set and sixth in total blocks. 

Head Coach Tara Hittle is in his fourth season. At 14 wins, the Mountain Lions already have more victories this season than in any of Hittle's previous three seasons. Hittle joined the UCCS program by way of Division I institutions Pepperdine, where she served as an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator from 2019-2021, and Duke, where she coached in 2018. Hittle is a Colorado Springs native. 

Coach's Corner
Head Coach Jennifer Stadler will begin her seventh season in charge of the Chadron State volleyball program in 2025, accumulating a 51-94 record in her first six seasons. 

Prior to CSC, Stadler coached for eight seasons at Sheridan College in Wyoming, racking up three straight 20-win seasons from 2012-2014. She was a player, assistant coach and interim head coach at current RMAC foe Black Hills State, back when the Yellow Jackets competed in the Dakota Athletic Conference. 

In her first year at CSC in 2019, Stadler immediately led the Eagles to a winning record of 14-12 and coached the RMAC Co-Defensive Player of the Year in Ashton Burditt. The Eagles had a banner year in 2023, finishing 15-12 for the program's highest win total since 2003. Chadron also had an 8-6 conference mark in 2023, finishing sixth in the league and qualifying for the RMAC Tournament for the first time in 20 years.