Here's a quick-hit, by-the-numbers preview of the 2022 Saint Mary's University volleyball team.
 
HEAD COACH:
•  Amber Zitzow (1st season)
 
A YEAR AGO:
• 3-8 MIAC (9th) | 7-20 Overall
 
RETURNERS TO WATCH:
• Ciarra McNally (Jr., Outside Hitter | 25 MP, 331 Kills, 14 assists, 17 aces, 192 digs, 28 blocks … 2021 First-Team All-MIAC … Led team and was second in MIAC in kills with 331 … Recorded a program-record 32 kills in the Cardinals' 3-2 victory against Carleton on Sept. 15, 2021 … Posted a career-high in digs (18) in the Cardinals' 3-1 win over St. Scholastica on Oct. 1. … Finished year with at least 10 kills 18 times — including five matches of 20 of more kills … Collected six double-doubles in 2021.
• Mandy Schmidt (Sr., Setter | 26 MP, 9 Kills, 541 assists, 27 aces, 172 digs, 11 blocks … Closed out 2021 with career-highs in assists (541), aces (27), digs (172) and blocks (11). … Posted at least 20 assists 14 times in 2021, after eclipsing 40 helpers five times during her sophomore campaign. … Led the team with seven double-doubles and now has 10 for her collegiate career).
• Braidyn Ruetten (Junior, Right-Side Hitter | 27 MP, 180 Kills, 9 assists, 13 aces, 53 digs, 81 blocks … One of just four Cardinals to play in all 27 matches in 2021 … Posted career-highs in kills (180), digs (53), blocks (81), and aces (13) … Second on the team in kills with 180. … Recorded a career-high 17 kills against Carroll Sept. 24, 2021).
• Faith VanErp (So., Outside Hitter | 27 MP, 176 Kills, 3 assists, 1 ace, 77 digs, 23 blocks … One of four Cardinals to play all 27 matches … Third on the team in kills (176) … Racked up a career-high 19 kills against Marian on Sept. 11.
 
BY THE NUMBERS:
• 1: Ciarra McNally (Lewiston, Minn.) picked up her first post-season conference honor, being named First-Team All-MIAC in 2021.
• 14: The Cardinals recorded 14 double-doubles in 2021. Mandy Schmidt (Mitchell, S.D.) picked up her team-leading seventh double-double of the season against Macalester on Oct. 22, dishing out 34 assists and adding 13 digs. Ciarra McNally (Lewiston, Minn.), meanwhile, posted her sixth double-double of the year against the Scots, finishing with 22 kills and 14 assists. Larkin Clem (Elk River, Minn.) accounted for SMU's other double-double, posting career-highs in both assists (30) and digs (10) en route to her first collegiate double-double against Carleton on Sept. 15.
• 17 + 14: Braidyn Ruetten (Holmen, Wis.) and Izabella Pigorsch (La Crosse, Wis.) each turned in single-match career-high performances against Carroll on Sept. 24., with Ruetten pounding out a career-high 17 kills, while Pigorsch added a career-best 14.
• 32: Ciarra McNally (Lewiston, Minn.) recorded a program-record 32 kills in the Cardinals' 3-2 victory against Carleton on Sept. 15. McNally's 32 kills against Carleton were not only a career-high, but also a single-match, program record, breaking the previous mark of 31, set by Brandi Blattner on Oct. 21, 2016.
• 32: Larkin Clem (Elk River, Minn.) serived up a team-leading 32 aces in 2021, five more than Mandy Schmidt (Mitchell, S.D.)
• 388: DeJaye Baab (Wabasha, Minn.) led the team in digs in 22 of SMU's 27 matches — including a season-high 29-dig effort in SMU's 3-1 win over St. Scholastica on Oct. 1. Baab closed out the year leading the team with 388 digs and compiled a total of 1,536 career digs, ranking her third all-time.
• 541: Mandy Schmidt (Mitchell, S.D.) owned a team-leading 541 assists in 2021. With her 34 assists vs. Macalester on Oct. 22, Schmidt posted five matches with 30 or more assists, while recording at least 20 helpers in a match 14 times.
 
DID YOU KNOW?
• The Cardinals played the first 17 matches of their 2021 season — and 19 of their first 21 — on the road.
 
DID YOU KNOW, PART II?
• Ciarra McNally (Lewiston, Minn.) closed out the season recording at least 10 kills 18 times — including five matches of 20 of more kills — and owned a team-best 331 kills.
 
DID YOU KNOW, PART III?
The Cardinals played four matches extended to a fifth set in 2021. SMU was extended to a fifth set in beating Carleton and falling to Marian, Carroll, and Macalester.