HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. – Northern Kentucky volleyball kept Youngstown State from recording its first win in Horizon League action, sweeping the Penguins 25-23, 25-22, 25-22. With the win, NKU moves to 10-11 overall and 6-6 in League play, while the Penguins drop to 7-19 (0-12 HL).
First Set Summary
- After a tight first half of the set, NKU took control with an 18-14 lead, but production out of YSU's middles allowed the Penguins to tie it up at 22-22. The Norse closed out the frame on a 3-0 run with kills from Haley Libs and Bailey Western, along with a set-winning ace that pegged the back line from Drew Hendricks.
- Kaelin Gentile was unstoppable in the opening set, with six kills on as many attempts. Libs added five kills and an ace, and the Norse hit .333 with 17 kills to start out strong.
Second Set Summary
- The Norse started the second set on a 5-0 run, with Gentile and Kelly Turner accounting for four of the points split between kills and an assisted block.
- NKU kept YSU at a distance for most of the set, but the Penguins chipped away at the deficit until late in the frame when they were able to take a 22-21 lead off three-straight kills from Sam Brown.
- Once again, NKU rattled off the last points of the set in consecutive fashion, with kills from Libs, Gentile and Western, along with an ace from Ashton Terrill.
- Libs led the offense with six kills on 11 swings, and Gentile added three on six attempts.
Third Set Summary
- The final set proved to be the most competitive across the board, with both teams recording more than 30 digs in the frame and a fair share of trading leads throughout.
- Keeping with the trend of finishing strong, the Norse and the Penguins were tied at 22-22 before Gentile recorded her final kill of the match and promptly assisted on a block with Drew Hendricks. Shelby Olsen finished off the contest with an ace.
- Terrill had a tremendous defensive set with 14 digs, while Olsen had nine digs and 14 assists.
- Gentile led the way offensively with six kills on eight attempts, while Hendricks had four kills and Libs added three.
Norse Notes
- Gentile tied Keely Creamer's Division I-era record for single-match hitting percentage (minimum 20 TA), terminating a career-best 15 kills on 20 swings with no errors for a .750 clip. Creamer recorded 19 kills in a sweep of Valparaiso on Oct. 7, 2016, to set the new standard for the program. Gentile also added a match-high four blocks.
- Libs had 14 kills as the second Norse in double-digit kills figures.
- Olsen dished out 40 assists and racked up 16 digs, also adding two aces.
- Terrill, who took over libero duties in the second set, led the team with 18 digs, along with three aces.
- Hendricks also added two aces and helped lead NKU in blocking, with four.
- Both teams were comparably efficient, with NKU hitting .233 while YSU hit .232. The Norse, however, terminated eight more balls than the Penguins.
- NKU also had the edge on serving, with nine aces in the sweep.
- The Norse have now won all six meetings in the series history with Youngstown State.
Up Next
- NKU makes its final road trip of the regular season when the Norse take on Milwaukee and UIC. The weekend starts out with Milwaukee on Friday, Nov. 3 at 7 p.m. before the Flames host the Norse on Saturday, Nov. 4 for a 5 p.m. match. The matches will be broadcast on ESPN3 with streaming available on computers, tablets, smart phones and streaming devices through WatchESPN and the ESPN App.
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