GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Northern Kentucky volleyball suffered a pair of setbacks in straight sets to open up the Gator Invitational on Friday. The Norse first squared off with former Atlantic Sun foe Lipscomb, falling 25-17, 25-18, 25-20 to the Bisons before a 25-22, 25-15, 25-15 loss to No. 3 Florida. NKU drops to 4-4 on the season, while Lipscomb advanced to 5-5 and Florida moved on to 6-0.
NKU vs. Lipscomb Match Report
First Set Summary
· The match started off evenly before Lipscomb ran away with the opening set after being tied 10-10 with the Norse. The Bisons ended the frame on two aces and had a combined four aces in the final seven points of the set.
· Lipscomb hit .400 in the opening set thanks to its returning All-American Carlyle Nusbaum, who registered seven kills on 11 swings.
·
Haley Libs led the Norse attack with three swings, while
Kelly Turner and
Bailey Western both added a pair of kills.
Second Set Summary
· Lipscomb started off stronger and took a six-point lead by the halfway mark, but the Norse were able to slow the attack of Nusbaum as she was held to just two kills.
· NKU was able to find the hardwood more often, led by six kills from
Laura Crawford, but 10 hitting errors plagued the team in the setback.
· NKU picked up its defensive play as
Ashton Terrill had six digs, while
McKenzie Eskridge added four digs to pace the team's 19 scoops.
Third Set Summary
· Crawford led the squad once more in the final frame, landing seven kills on 13 swings while Western added a trio of kills.
· The Norse rallied throughout the frame, tied up until the 18-18 mark before three untimely errors gave the Bisons the advantage.
· Two more aces gave Lipscomb the match point, which ended on a Nusbaum kill.
Norse Notes
· Crawford led both teams with 14 kills, hitting at a .150 clip. The sophomore also added seven digs.
·
Shelby Olsen was just off her fourth-straight double-double with 31 assists and nine digs.
· Terrill led the defensive effort with 11 digs, while Eskridge was not far off with nine of her own.
· Libs finished with seven kills, while Turner and Western each added five.
· Lipscomb hit .305 for the match compared to .135 for the Norse and had a formidable block, with 10 rejections over the three sets.
NKU vs. No. 3 Florida Match Report
First Set Summary
· NKU had a strong start to the match, at one point leading the Gators by two points in the early goings.
· A 7-1 run by Florida put the Gators in charge, but NKU held on to the margin and broke the 20-point barrier thanks to a couple of Florida miscues before falling 25-22.
· Turner led the Norse attack with three kills, while Libs and Western added a pair of kills each.
Second Set Summary
· After maintaining a slight lead in the beginning of the second set, the Gators used three-straight kills from 6-8 middle blocker Rachel Kramer to pull ahead, 12-6.
Third Set Summary
· NKU fell behind early thanks to an 8-2 Florida run to start the match, but Terrill brought the Norse within a point thanks to three aces within four service attempts.
·
Drew Hendricks took charge in the third set, landing five kills on five swings.
· Despite being tied at 13-13, Florida once again turned to Kramer and Taelor Kellum in the middle to go on a 12-2 run to end the match.
Norse Notes
· Hendricks led the squad with six kills on as many attempts while seeing just a set and a half of action.
· Libs added five kills and five digs while Western had four kills and a pair of blocks.
· Eskridge led the Norse defense with 14 digs, followed by Crawford with seven and booth Olsen and Terrill with six.
· Florida hit .296 on the evening, while NKU was held to .047. The Gators also held the edge on digs (55-44) and blocks (8-4).
Up Next
· NKU concludes preseason action tomorrow against Florida A&M, which was also swept by both Lipscomb and Florida on the first day of the tournament. First serve is scheduled for 5 p.m. ET from Gainesville, Fla.
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