HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. – Northern Kentucky volleyball set two new records in its win over Wright State. First, the Norse hit for a new Division-I-era record of .430, surpassing the previous mark of .402 set on Oct. 7 against Valparaiso. The second record is a more impressive one, which spans the entire 41 years of volleyball at NKU. In the program's history, the Norse had never swept seven consecutive conference opponents before recording a seventh-straight Horizon League win with a 25-13, 25-19, 25-17 victory over the Raiders.
With the win, NKU moves to 13-8 on the season and 7-3 in the Horizon League to tie for second with Green Bay and Oakland. Wright State drops to 8-15 overall and 3-7 in League play.
The Quote
"We had a great night serve receiving and our offense was on fire. I know the first set we hit .600, and all our hitters did a nice job staying aggressive while Taylor (Snyder) did a good job distributing the ball. We're excited to get the job done in three, and we've got a tough weekend ahead of us." –Head Coach
Liz Hart
First Set Summary
- The Norse were practically unstoppable in the opening set, hitting .600 off 18 kills with no errors.
- Sophomore outside hitter Haley Libs led the charge with five kills, while senior outside Tristen Simpson, senior middle hitter Keely Creamer and freshman rightside Laura Crawford all had four kills each.
- Lauren Hurley led the Norse defense with four digs.
Second Set Summary
- The second set saw the lowest hitting percentages of the match for both NKU and Wright State, with the Norse putting it away at a .281 rate while the Raiders were held to .162 hitting.
- Libs once again recorded five kills on eight swings, also adding three digs and a block.
- Crawford added four kills, while Simpson chipped in three to complete the wing attack.
Third Set Summary
- The Norse hit .419 in the final set, led by Creamer with seven kills on eight attempts.
- Defensively, Simpson, Hurley and redshirt-senior setter Taylor Snyder all had two digs. Both the Norse and the Raiders had just eight digs each in the set.
Norse Notes
- NKU is one of just two teams in NCAA Division I currently riding a sweep streak of seven or better. The only other team to have downed its last seven opponents is Princeton, which has a seven-match sweep streak dating back to Sept. 30.
- NKU had not recorded two sweeps over a conference opponent since the 2012 season, when the Norse took down both Mercer and Stetson in straight sets.
- The Norse have not had seven straight wins since Aug. 24-Sept. 27, 2012, when NKU went on an eight-match winning streak to kick off joining the ranks of Division I with wins over Saint Peter's, Western Carolina, North Carolina A&T, Wright State, Morehead State, Alabama A&M, Evansville and Providence. Furthermore, NKU has not had six consecutive sweeps since Sept. 2-12, 2008, when the Norse downed Lindsey Wilson, Thomas More, Concord, West Virginia State, Charleston (W. Va.), Glenville State, Kentucky Wesleyan and Wisconsin-Parkside all in straight sets. The wins are even more impressive when considering that they have all come within conference play. The last time NKU won seven straight conference matches was between Sept. 19-Oct. 124, 2008, when NKU recorded 10 victories over Great Lakes Valley Conference opponents.
- The seven consecutive sweeps against conference opponents is a first-time feat for the Norse. Since NKU joined the GLVC in 1985 for the first season in a conference and onward, the Norse have never recorded seven consecutive straight-set victories over a conference opponent.
- The Norse hit at a .430 clip, which is a new Division-I-era record for the team. It bests the .402 hitting percentage set on Oct. 7 in the sweep of Valparaiso. The Norse committed just eight hitting errors while putting away 48 kills. It is the highest overall percentage by NKU since the Norse hit .455 against Kentucky Wesleyan on Nov. 5, 2011.
- Libs and Creamer led the offense with 13 kills each. Creamer hit .632 and also led the team in blocks, with three, while Libs hit at a .619 clip while adding an ace and five digs. Libs' hitting percentage is a new career high.
- Junior middle blocker Georgia Childers also added three blocks.
- Crawford hit double-digit kills for the first time in her career with 10 kills and a .350 hitting percentage. She also added two blocks and three digs.
- Snyder dished out 40 assists and also led the team in digs, with nine, just shy of a fifth-consecutive double-double.
- For the second straight match, NKU was not aced a single time. The Norse had three aces of their own, with Libs, Snyder and junior DS McKenzie Eskridge each picking up a winner from behind the line.
Up Next
- NKU hits the road to take on two of the top teams in the Horizon League, first traveling to Rochester, Michigan, for a tilt with Oakland at 6 p.m. ET on Oct. 28. The team then heads to Cleveland State on Oct. 29 with first serve scheduled for 4 p.m.
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