HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. – Northern Kentucky volleyball has started to make a habit of giving its fans rousing five-set victories over Horizon League opponents inside Regents Hall, as the Norse ground out a gritty 25-17, 17-25, 25-15, 25-21, 19-17 win against UIC. With the win, NKU moves to 7-7 overall and 3-2 in Horizon League action, while the Flames drop to 12-6 (3-2 HL).
The Quote
"The girls played so well the entire match and I'm so excited about how well we played at the end of the match. Drew (Hendricks)'s swings were just outstanding and then Haley (Libs) stepped up. I thought we did a great job of keeping our composure and we made things work." – Head Coach
Liz Hart
First Set Summary
- The Norse went out of the gates quickly, taking an 11-4 lead thanks to a strong net presence with three blocks along with an additional three forced errors from the Flames.
- UIC made a run midway through, but a kill from Haley Libs got the momentum back in NKU's favor as the Norse were able to keep the Flames at arm's reach for the remainder of the set.
- NKU hit .258 while holding UIC to -.051 thanks to 12 errors by the Flames.
- Drew Hendricks paced NKU's offense with four kills on eight attempts and no errors, also adding two blocks.
- Kaelin Gentile assisted on three of NKU's five blocks, also adding a pair of kills on five swings.
- Shelby Olsen was unfazed as UIC's primary target in the back row, scooping up eight digs to lead NKU's defense.
Second Set Summary
- The Norse did not seem shaken by an early run from UIC, steadily earning points until the 15-13 mark, when a kill from the UIC middle and an ace forced an NKU timeout at 17-13.
- UIC finished off the set on an 8-4 run, with the frame closing on three consecutive NKU miscues.
- Haley Libs took charge of the offensive production with five kills on 10 swings, while Bailey Western hit .500 off her six swings.
Third Set Summary
- Following the break, the third set was closely contested until it was tied up at 13-13. From then, NKU went on a 12-2 run to take the set, highlighted by back-to-back kills from Gentile and a pair of aces from McKenzie Eskridge.
- Gentile was offensively impressive with five kills on 11 attempts, followed up by Libs' three kills.
- Laura Crawford and Georgia Childers had strong defensive sets, with six and five digs, respectively.
Fourth Set Summary
- NKU held a three-point lead for most of the first part of the fourth set, but UIC rallied back to knot the score at 15-15. NKU attempted to keep pace, but the Flames used their momentum to take the set, 25-21.
- Gentile and Crawford teamed up to aid the front row defense with three blocks each, while Crawford had four kills and no errors on nine swings and Gentile added three kills on five swings.
- Eskridge and Libs paced the back row with seven and six digs, respectively.
Fifth Set Summary
- NKU faced two match points in a heated fifth set, but Gentile and Hendricks made a series of clutch plays to keep the Norse in contention. Gentile recorded a kill at 12-14, while Hendricks followed it up with another kill to tie the score at 14-14.
- Hendricks added two more kills and a block throughout the remainder of the match, and NKU closed out the match on back-to-back kills from Western and Libs on the third match point attempt.
- NKU committed just one error compared to six by the Flames in the set, hitting .333 led by Hendricks with four kills on five swings.
Norse Notes
- NKU now leads the all-time series against UIC, 7-1.
- Gentile had career highs in both kills (14) and blocks (8), while hitting at a .314 clip.
- Libs also contributed 14 kills and recorded her eighth double-double of the season with 14 digs.
- Olsen had her fourth-straight double-double with 46 assists and 17 digs, also adding five kills on eight attempts.
- Hendricks had her third-consecutive match in double-digit kills, adding 12 along with five blocks to match her career best.
- Crawford was just off a double-double with nine kills, 15 digs and seven blocks, the last of which marks a career high by three blocks.
- Western added seven kills at .316 and a career-best six blocks.
- Childers, appearing as a defensive specialist, notched 11 digs for a new career best.
- Eskridge led the defense with 19 digs and also served up two aces.
- NKU out-blocked the Flames substantially, 14-6, but UIC had the 89-81 advantage in digs.
- The Norse hit .223 for the match, which is the highest percentage in a five-set match for NKU this year.
Up Next
- NKU returns to Regents Hall tomorrow at 4 p.m. when the team hosts Milwaukee. The Panthers are coming off a sweep at the hands of IUPUI this evening. The match will be broadcast on ESPN3 with streaming available on computers, tablets and smart phones through WatchESPN and the ESPN App.
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