SPARTANBURG, S.C. – Jayden Julian posted 14 kills and hit .313 on the match to lead the Northern Kentucky University volleyball team to a 3-1 (25-21, 14-25, 25-10, 25-17) win over South Carolina Upstate in Saturday's Atlantic Sun Conference matinee.
 
"Jayden had a nice match, and did a good job terminating the ball," said NKU head coach Liz Hart following the win. "From a defensive standpoint, she had a lot of great touches on the block and was very active at the net. She did a great job of being aggressive on the attack and defensively today.
 
"We did a lot better job of being aggressive both offensively and defensively, particularly in the third and fourth sets. We just played a lot cleaner volleyball today, and it showed in the results."
 
Keely Creamer added 10 kills for the Norse, who improved to 11-5 overall and 1-2 in A-Sun play. Tristen Simpson had nine kills and Megan Wanstrath added seven in the offensive effort. Taylor Snyder claimed another double-double, her ninth of the season, with 41 assists and 14 digs to go with four kills, while Mel Stewart's 25 digs led the defensive efforts for NKU in a key road win.
 
"The conference has been so competitive this season," added Hart. "If you look up and down the list, 60 percent of the matches in the conference have been going to five sets, with the home team coming out on top in a lot of those matches. It's going to be very important for us to take care of business at home and steal these wins on the road to keep pace."
 
Kayla McAvoy's 14 kills paced the Spartans (9-10, 0-3 A-Sun) as Kayla Eversgard claimed 10 kills and 19 digs. Lexi Gober went for 33 assists and 10 digs as well in the effort.
 
The Norse came out strong in Set 1, opening on a 7-1 run, but the middle portion of the set belonged to the Spartans, as the retook the lead at 13-12 after a 5-0 run of their own, keyed by a pair of kills from Kayla Eversgard. A string of attack errors from the Spartans allowed the Norse to rally four points and retake the lead, but Upstate had four points of their own to answer. Trailing 20-18, Jayden Julian took the team on her shoulders, picking up three kills and two blocks to account for the final five points of the match, taking Set 1, 25-21.
 
An early 9-2 run for the Spartans put USC Upstate ahead early, 10-4, and kept the pressure on throughout the set, pushing on to a 25-14 win to even the match. Upstate hit .378 as a team on the match, picking up 18 kills in the process.
 
Set 3 opened with the Norse mirroring Upstate's efforts from the previous set, racing out to a 12-4 lead early en route to a 25-10 set victory. Julian poured in five more kills for the Norse, who hit .357 as a team to counter Upstate's effort in the previous set. Mel Stewart offered up three service aces as well for NKU.
 
After giving up the first four points of Set 4, the Norse came back with four in a row of their own to tie things up. Upstate answered with three in a row, but fortunes soon turned, as the Norse rattled off eight points in a row, including six in a row on Spartan attack errors. The rally gave NKU a 15-7 lead that they would not relinquish. Drew Hendricks saw her collegiate debut at the end of the set, hammering home the game-winning point to give the Norse a 25-17 win.
 
The Norse open up the home half of the conference schedule on Friday when they host North Florida for a 6:30 p.m. start. It's "Styles for Smiles" to benefit the Brighton Center; fans who bring in a clothing donation will receive $2 off admission at the door.