HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. – Jenna Ruble put up a career-best 20 kills, leading the Northern Kentucky University volleyball team to a dramatic 3-2 (22-25, 25-21, 25-14, 20-25, 15-9) victory over Evansville on Tuesday night in Regents Hall.
 
Ruble was one of four Norse players in double-figures for kills on the night, helping NKU improve to 7-3 on the season. Keely Creamer added 15 kills, attacking at a .400 clip on the night, and a team-best four blocks. Julian picked up her third double-double of the year with 13 kills and 13 digs. Megan Wanstrath rounded out the offensive standouts with 12 kills, while Tristen Simpson posted eight kills and two key blocks in the deciding set.
 
"We really responded in the fifth set," said Hart. "In the fourth set, we got a little shaky, but in the fifth, once we got to 10 [points], we pushed five. Tristen had some awesome, awesome blocks at the very end of the match."
 
After the Norse took a 10-9 advantage in the final set, Simpson and Ruble combined on back-to-back blocks on attacks from Evansville's Ashley Ring, sparking the 5-0 rally that closed out the match. Simpson picked up two of her kills on eight attempts in that set.
 
Ruble eclipsed her previous career high of 18 kills, which she collected last season in a win over Mercer on Nov. 1. That match also marked the last time NKU had a 20-kill performer, as Jayden Julian picked up 22 kills in that winning effort.
 
"She found a way to get the kills, especially in the beginning," said NKU head coach Liz Hart of her senior middle blocker. "I know she got blocked a lot, but as the set got on, she found some openings and was able to terminate the ball, especially in the fourth and fifth set."
 
Mel Stewart again keyed the Norse defense with 24 digs, while Taylor Snyder had 17 digs to go with her 58 assists, marking her sixth consecutive match with a double-double. Lauren Hurley added 10 digs, while McKenzie Eskridge had eight digs and a match-high three service aces.
 
Evansville (4-8) was strong at the net, posting 15 blocks as a team. Genesis Miranda led the Purple Aces with seven blocks to go with 15 kills. Cathy Schreiber paced the Evansville offense with 16 kills, while Kim Deprez added 35 digs.
 
"They're a great blocking team, and we just had to tell our hitters to stay aggressive," added Hart. "Sometimes we'll start to shut down and get a little tentative, but I thought the girls did a great job to stay with it and keep attacking. We attacked their corners very well in the third set, which helped us win that by a big margin. Our hitters did a nice job adjusting, and when Evansville adjusted its defense, we adjusted along with them."
 
Evansville got five blocks in each of the first two sets, including a pair of key blocks late in Set 1 to key a 5-0 rally that gave the Purple Aces the edge in the set, as they would go on to take a 25-22 set victory.
 
Miranda was strong in Set 2 for Evansville, posting seven kills and four solo blocks in the set, but the Norse fought through to even the match. The teams jockeyed back-and-forth in the second stanza, knotting the score at 21-21 before the Norse took advantage of two attack errors from Evansville along with kills from Creamer and Julian to push the final four points and take the set.
 
The adjustments in the locker room paid off in the third set, as the Norse sparked a 9-2 run mid set en route to a 25-14 win. The Norse hit .424 as a team on the set as Ruble went 4-for-5 herself. It was also the only set in which Evansville failed to record a block.
 
Set 4 saw the Norse fall behind 4-1 early, a deficit from which they could not recover. Schreiber and Ashley Ring each had four kills for Evansville on the set, while Stephanie Cerino added three solo blocks in the frame, setting up the dramatic final set.
 
The Norse now move on to their final weekend tournament on Friday when they face Liberty at the Belmont Invitational in Nashville, Tennessee. NKU will close out the weekend with a match against the host Bruins as well as a rematch against Wright State. To keep up with the latest on NKU volleyball, follow @NKUNorseVBall on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.