HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. - On their day, seniors Mel Stewart and Jayden Julian, accompanied by the strong performance from the freshmen Haley Libs and Kelly Turner, led the Northern Kentucky University volleyball team to a five-set win over the Green Bay Phoenix in Saturday's Horizon League matinee (24-26, 26-24, 25-21, 20-25, 15-10).
 
NKU (12-13, 7-6 Horizon) finished the match with five hitters in double-digits for kills. Libs once again led the Norse in kills with 23 on the match followed by Keely Creamer with 18 kills, Julian with 13 kills, and Turner with 11. Stewart picked up 24 digs to mark her fifth-straight match with 20+ digs and added four service aces.
 
Green Bay (15-11, 6-7 Horizon) had standout Taylor Totka, who ended with 18 kills, six blocks and three service aces. Jessica Wolf added 16 kills followed by Megan Powers with 15 of her own. The team combined for 10 blocks and hit a combined .264.
 
NKU came out in Set 1 to a strong start with a 4-1 lead, but the Phoenix made a quick turnaround to take the 9-6 lead. Green Bay continued to stretch the lead, eventually getting it to 19-11 before NKU attempted a late comeback going on a 3-0 run and later, facing set point, rattled off six in a row to tie it at 24. The Phoenix, though, pulled together two straight points to take the set 26-24.
 
Both teams went back-and-forth in the early part of the set 2, as the Norse had the slight lead most of the frame thanks to a 3-1 start. The Phoenix kept pace and used a 4-0 run to take the lead at 19-18. NKU kept up point-for-point until another 3-0 run gave the Norse a 23-21 edge. Despite a Green Bay rally, the Norse were able to finish out the set, claiming three of the final four points for a 26-24 set to level the match.
 
Back-to-back kills by Keyaira Lankheit closed an early deficit for the Norse in Set 3, and a 4-0 run later gave NKU a 10-9 lead. Two kills by Julian and an ace from Stewart keyed a 9-1 Norse run to push the lead to 19-11 as the Norse took the set, 25-21.
 
A 10-1 run by Green Bay, marked by four kills from Wolf, gave Green Bay an 18-13 lead in Set 4. The Norse were unable to mount a comeback losing set 4, 25-20. Wolf and Powers each finished with five kills in the set for the Phoenix to send NKU to a second-straight five-set match.
 
Both teams exchanged points in the final set before back-to-back kills by Lankheit and Turner gave the Norse a 7-5 lead. The Phoenix turned around with three points of their own to take the lead, 8-7. The teams again traded points until NKU rattled off a 5-0 run, keyed by two kills and a block from Libs, to finish off the win.
 
After closing out their home schedule, the Norse hit the road for the final three matches of the regular season. NKU returns to action on Saturday, Nov. 7, taking on Youngstown State. First serve is set for 5 p.m.
 
Norse Notes

• Taylor Snyder recorded her 10^th double-double performance on the season with 63 assists and 14 digs. Julian also had her third double-double of the season with 13 kills and 10 digs. The pair also put up double-doubles in the team's first meeting with Green Bay on Oct. 2.
• NKU ran its record to 7-0 when hitting .250 or better, including tonight's .278 percentage with 76 kills and 26 errors on 180 attempts.
• With the win, NKU is now in sole possession of fourth place in the Horizon League with three matches left on the season. The top six teams will qualify for the Horizon League Championship, to be held Nov. 20-22.