HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. - For the second straight evening, Northern Kentucky University overwhelmed an opponent with its superior height and cast of powerful attackers.
Some 24 hours after dispatching Lindsey Wilson College in three sets, NKU posted a 25-16, 25-21, 25-19 victory against Thomas More on Wednesday night.
Kim Nemcek hammered down a match-leading 13 kills and attacked at a .524 clip for NKU, which improved to 3-2.
Nemcek sparked NKU by recording five kills in six attempts during the opening set. The Norse, who jumped out to a 7-2 lead, attacked at a .423 clip in the first set. Thomas More battled back and cut NKU's advantage to 15-13, but the Norse used a 10-3 run to take the first set.
NKU, which hit .533 against Lindsey Wilson on Tuesday night, cooled off during the second and third sets against Thomas More but still attacked at a .297 clip for the match. The Norse limited Thomas More (3-2) to a .182 hitting percentage and used their superior height to control play at the net most of the evening.
Nemcek, a sophomore middle hitter and a transfer from Winona State, finished with eight digs and two service aces.
Kelsey Wesaw, a 6-foot-3 middle hitter, added eight kills and a block solo for NKU.
NKU rallied from an early deficit in the second set to take a 25-21 win. Thomas More held a 10-8 lead after a kill by Hillary Monnin, but NKU scored the next three points to take an 11-10 advantage.
Thomas More, however, continued to battle NKU and tied the set at 12-all. The Norse then used a kill by Wesaw, a service ace from
Natalie Forbes and a kill by
Noelle Peterson to take a 15-12 lead they would not relinquish the remainder of the set.
Kristina Eisenmenger and Peterson each collected six kills for the Norse, who now lead the all-time series with Thomas More by a 13-3 margin. Eisenmenger, a senior right-side hitter and Notre Dame Academy graduate, upped her career kills total to 1,341.
Peterson, a freshman outside hitter from Milwaukee, Wis., hit .375 for the match. Forbes, NKU's senior setter from Highlands High School, finished with 34 assists and six digs.
Megan Dooley and
Chelsea Clark collected 10 digs and two servies aces apiece. Norse sophomore middle blocker
Annie Lucas had three kills, two blocks and a .500 hitting percentage.
Kristine Rust led Thomas More (3-2) with 10 kills. The Saints have not defeated NKU on the volleyball court since Sept. 4, 1993.
Thomas More is an NCAA Division III member.
NKU hits the road this weekend to play four matches in the Charleston (W.Va.) Tournament. The Norse meet Concord (W.Va.) and West Virginia State on Friday.
NKU concludes the two-day event Saturday with matches against Charleston and Glenville State.
After that trip, NKU begins Great Lakes Valley Conference play Sept. 9 with a road match at Kentucky Wesleyan. The Norse hit the road later that week when they travel to Kenosha, Wis., to meet Wisconsin-Parkside on Sept. 12. The following day, NKU plays two-time defending GLVC Tournament champion Lewis in Romeoville, Ill.
The Norse finish off a stretch of four GLVC road matches on Sept. 16 with a contest against Bellarmine in Louisville, Ky. NKU next plays at home on Sept. 19 when Saint Joseph's visits Regents Hall for a 7 p.m. match.
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