NOTRE DAME, Ind. – Northern Kentucky volleyball split the final two matches of the Golden Dome Invitational, downing Weber State in four sets (25-22, 28-30, 25-17, 25-22) before falling to Notre Dame in three sets (25-17, 28-26, 25-14). The Norse begin the season at 2-1 and posted more than 95 digs in each of the three matches over the weekend.
The Quote
"It was a great weekend to go 2-1. Our servers did a nice job from the line with eight aces against Weber State and just one reception error on our end. We also played great defense and were able to put some pressure on Notre Dame. We learned a lot about ourselves and we're looking forward to getting back into the gym." – Head Coach
Liz Hart
Match 1 Recap: NKU 3, Weber State 1
First Set Summary
- The Norse found themselves down 5-3 in the start of the match, but a 5-0 run that included a pair of kills from Haley Libs and two aces by Miranda Wucherer put NKU at an 8-5 advantage. The team maintained the lead for the remainder of the set.
- Weber State made a five-point run at the end of the frame, taking advantage of four-straight errors by the Norse, but NKU closed it out off a kill from Bailey Western.
- NKU's freshmen shone in the opening set, with Natalie Hardig leading the way with four kills and a pair of blocks while Wucherer chipped in eight digs and six assists to go with her two aces.
Second Set Summary
- Norse errors allowed the Wildcats to take a set off NKU, with Weber State committing just five miscues compared to 13 for NKU.
- The set was a defensive battle, with both teams combining for 55 digs. Ashton Terrill scooped up nine digs to pace NKU, while Wucherer added six.
- Haley Libs put down seven kills to lead the Norse offensive.
Third Set Summary
- NKU improved drastically in error reduction, committing just three in the third set. Libs hit .667 with six kills and added two aces, and Terrill controlled the back row with six digs.
Fourth Set Summary
- Terrill and Libs led the Norse to victory, with 14 digs from NKU's libero in the final frame while Libs had nine kills.
- The Norse went out to a comfortable seven-point lead thanks to a string of serving runs and held off a late push by the Wildcats as Libs ended the match with three-straight kills.
Norse Notes
- Terrill finished with 32 digs, which is a new career high for the sophomore and it is the first time that she has met the 30-dig mark. The last time a Norse had 30 digs in a match was on Nov. 18, 2016, when Lauren Hurley had 37 against Valparaiso in the Horizon League Tournament.
- Libs was just one kill off her career best and the NKU Division I single-game record, terminating 25 balls at a .254 clip. She also added 13 digs for her second-straight double-double, the 39th of her career.
- Wucherer and Shelby Olsen also had double-doubles, both with 28 assists while Wucherer had 18 digs and Olsen had 11. NKU has had at least three players with a double-double in their first two matches of the year. Wucherer also added seven kills, two blocks and two assists.
- Laura Crawford was the fifth Norse with double-digit digs, with 16 of NKU's 98 total digs.
- Hardig had 10 kills and once again led the team with five blocks. Western was just off double digits with nine kills.
Match 2 Recap: Notre Dame 3, NKU 0
First Set Summary
- Notre Dame cruised to a first set win by holding the Norse to .000, aided by six blocks.
- Though the Norse struggled offensively, NKU outperformed the Irish on the back line with 30 digs compared to 25 for Notre Dame.
- Libs led the way with 11 digs, while Terrill had eight.
- Wucherer registered four kills and three assists.
Second Set Summary
- NKU led for the majority of the second set and held Notre Dame to a .149 clip. Seven Norse recorded at least one kill, and the Norse upped their defensive effort even more with 41 scoops.
- Terrill had 13 digs to lead the back row, while Libs added 10 more.
- Notre Dame held off five game points, clawing its way back to win the second in extra points.
Third Set Summary
- The Irish regained control of the game's pace and handily won the third.
- Hitting errors plagued the Norse in the final frame as NKU hit -.045, but Terrill continued to keep play alive with 10 of NKU's 28 digs.
Norse Notes
- Terrill surpassed 30 digs once more, recording 31 in the setback. It marked the first time since Sept. 9-10, 2016, that a player had back-to-back matches with at least 30 digs, when Hurley had 30 and 31 against Appalachian State and Morehead State. It marks just the second time that back-to-back 30-dig matches have been recorded in the Division I era, and also just the second time in at least the past decade.
- Libs had her second 20-dig match of the tournament with 23 in the setback. She also added five kills.
- Wucherer led the offense with eight kills to go with 15 assists and eight digs.
- Olsen posted her third-straight double-double with 11 assists and 15 digs.
- Libs and Terrill were named to the all-tournament team.
- Over the weekend, the Norse averaged a whopping 24.67 digs per set, led by Terrill with 6.92 digs per set while Libs contributed 4.92 digs per set to go with 3.83 kills per set.
Up Next
- NKU heads to DeKalb, Illinois, for the NIU Invitational on Friday-Saturday, Aug. 31-Sept. 1. The Norse play Virginia on Friday at 4 p.m. ET before facing Nevada at noon and NIU at 8 p.m. on Saturday.
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