DAYTON, Ohio – Northern Kentucky volleyball swept its regular-season series with Wright State with a four-set win over the Raiders on Friday afternoon. With the 24-26, 25-20, 25-17, 25-11 victory, NKU moves to 9-9 overall and 5-4 in Horizon League play, while WSU drops to 9-13 (3-6 HL).
First Set Summary
- Wright State had to fight hard for its only set win of the match, overcoming a 24-23 set point to push extra points for the 26-24 win.
- The Raiders had a strong net presence with six blocks in the opening frame and hit .326 for its most efficient set by far.
- Laura Crawford shone for the Norse, putting away six kills with no errors. Haley Libs and Bailey Western also added three kills
Second Set Summary
- NKU had its lowest hitting percentage in the second set at .163, but an even lower .050 clip from the Raiders allowed NKU to tie the contest up at one set apiece.
- WSU continued to put pressure on the Norse at the net with three blocks, but NKU retaliated with three blocks of its own led by Western with two.
- Libs added five kills on 12 swings, along with four digs, to help lead the Norse to the 25-17 set win.
Third Set Summary
- The Norse connected at a .429 clip coming out of the break, while the Raiders continued to struggle offensively with a .036 hitting percentage and just seven kills.
- Crawford had another impressive set with five kills and no errors on eight swings and also added three digs.
- Kaelin Gentile went 3-for-4 in the frame from the middle.
Fourth Set Summary
- The Norse took control early and played a clean set with just one error committed in the 25-11 capstone set. WSU earned nearly all of their points, with 10 kills, but eight errors in the set kept the Raiders out of contention.
- Gentile went 3-for-4 once more, while Libs had three kills on seven swings.
- McKenzie Eskridge had a strong service run to end the match, with two of her three aces in the frame coming in the last three points, including the match winner.
Norse Notes
- The Norse had their highest hitting percentage in a match since entering Horizon League play, connecting at a .266 clip while Wright State was held to .138.
- For the second-straight match, Haley Libs, Shelby Olsen and Laura Crawford all recorded double-doubles. Libs had her fifth-straight double-double with 14 kills and 11 digs, along with two blocks, to lead the team. Olsen added 40 assists and a team-high 13 digs. Crawford chipped in 12 kills and 10 digs, also adding two blocks.
- Gentile had 10 kills at a .500 clip, committing just one error on 18 swings. She also added two blocks.
- Western swung .312 with eight kills and led the net defense with four blocks.
- Eskridge added 12 digs and contributed four points from the service line.
- NKU is now 19-12 all-time against Wright State. The Norse have gone 9-1 over the Raiders since transitioning to Division I.
Up Next
- The Norse look to avenge their first loss in League play when IUPUI comes to Regents Hall on Sunday, Oct. 22 at 2 p.m. ET. The match will be broadcast on ESPN3 with streaming available on computers, tablets and smart phones through WatchESPN and the ESPN App.
#TakeNotice
