CHICAGO – Northern Kentucky volleyball closed the 2016 regular season on a positive note, taking down UIC on the road in five sets. With the win, NKU moves to 17-10 overall and 11-5 in Horizon League action, while the Flames dip to 16-14 (4-12 HL).
The Norse were tied for third in the League with Oakland heading into the weekend, but claimed sole possession of third place with tonight's win after the Golden Grizzlies were upended by Milwaukee last night. NKU could still tie for second in the League should Green Bay fall to Wright State in the final match of the League season tomorrow at noon. However, the Norse have already locked in the third seed in the Horizon League Championship, as the Phoenix would have the upper hand in the tiebreak after upsetting League-leading Cleveland State on Wednesday evening.
With a winning percentage of .688, NKU will finish the Horizon League season with its highest conference winning percentage since joining the ranks of Division I. The previous was a .667 percentage when the Norse went 12-6 in the Atlantic Sun in their first year of D-I competition, finishing third in the conference.
The Quote
"The game was very back and forth, and the team did a great job finishing at the end of the match! We will find ourselves in difficult situations in this upcoming tournament and execution in the end will be critical." – Head Coach
Liz Hart
First Set Summary
- The Norse quickly took control in the opening set, hitting .400 as a team with 15 kills and just one error in the 25-14 win.
- Senior middle hitter Keely Creamer and freshman rightside hitter Laura Crawford both posted four kills and hit over .500 in the first set.
- Redshirt-senior libero Lauren Hurley led the Norse defense with seven digs.
Second Set Summary
- NKU trailed by as many as five in the early goings of the second set and managed to battle back to come within one at 23-22, but the Flames ultimately terminated well enough to secure a 25-23 set win and knot the match at 1-1.
- The team hit .111, but UIC did not have much of an advantage after hitting .149.
- Sophomore outside hitter Haley Libs went off for seven kills to lead the Norse, while senior outside Tristen Simpson and Creamer also added four apiece.
- Hurley had another strong set in the back row, racking up 10 digs while junior DS McKenzie Eskridge added four.
Third Set Summary
- UIC was able to go up 2-1 after securing another 25-23 win in the third set. The two teams kept the match tight, but the Flames were led by a strong outside attack to claim the set.
- NKU's offense was well spread out, but only Creamer recorded more than two kills, with four.
Fourth Set Summary
- Hitting efficiency rose up to .333 in the fourth set to push the extra game, allowing the Norse to take a 25-21 win.
- Libs once again posted seven kills to pace the team, while Simpson and Creamer added four each.
- Hurley, who had been kept quiet in the previous set, got back into the match with seven digs while Eskridge added another four.
Fifth Set Summary
- UIC got out to a 4-0 lead in the deciding set, and NKU trailed the entirety of the fifth set up until tying it at 14-14.
- Facing match point, Simpson extended the game with a kill at 14-12. An attack error by UIC's leading scorer Kelsie Groot provided the equalizer, and Libs finished it off with two kills to seal the win.
- Libs had four kills on four swings and also had her strongest defensive set with six digs.
Norse Notes
- Libs led the team with a season-high 23 kills at a .333 clip and recorded her seventh double-double of the season with 16 digs. She delivered the final two kills of the match, taking the Norse from a 14-14 tie to victory over the Flames.
- Creamer added 19 kills, tying her career high for the fourth time this year, and hit at a .395 clip. She also added five blocks to lead the Norse defense at the net.
- Simpson had 13 kills and a pair of blocks, while Crawford added 12 kills and three blocks.
- Hurley was one dig shy of another 30-dig match, posting 29 scoops while adding an ace for the Norse.
- Eskridge tied her season high in digs, with 14.
- Redshirt-senior setter Taylor Snyder posted her 10th double-double of the year with a season-best 60 assists paired with 11 digs.
- NKU hit .260 as a team and held UIC to .185. The team recorded 90 digs for the second time this season to best UIC by 14 digs, but the Flames held the edge in blocking (13-9) and aces (6-4).
Up Next
- The Norse will head into the Horizon League Championship next weekend, hosted by regular-season champion Cleveland State. NKU earned the No. 3 seed, and will play No. 6 seed Valparaiso in the tournament on Friday, Nov. 18. The semifinals will be held on Nov. 19 and the finals will be on Nov. 20.
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