HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. – Northern Kentucky volleyball fell in four sets to Green Bay on Friday evening, 25-21, 25-19, 23-25, 25-23. With the loss, NKU moves to 11-12 overall and 4-7 in Horizon League play, and the Phoenix advance to 17-6 (9-2 Horizon).
First Set Summary
- Green Bay used a late run to pull away from the Norse at the 19-19 mark, going on a five-point run to hold set point. The Norse were unable to close the gap as the Phoenix took the opening frame.
- Anna Brinkmann paced NKU's offense with five kills along with eight digs, and Reilly Briggs added four terminations. Ashton Terrill had a terrific performance in the back row with nine digs.
- The Norse had more kills than the Phoenix, 17-14, but Green Bay committed just one error in the opening frame compared to NKU's eight.
Second Set Summary
- Briggs had four of NKU's 12 kills in the second set as Green Bay's offense picked up with 18 kills at a .378 clip. The Phoenix once again used a late run to take the set and go out to a two-set advantage.
Third Set Summary
- NKU made a lineup change, moving Briggs from the rightside to the left pin. She led the way with five kills and no errors on 10 swings as the Norse posted a .302 hitting percentage with just three errors.
- NKU led for much of the set, leading by as many as seven points, but Green Bay got within a point at the 24-23 mark. Peytton Bagwell secured the NKU set win with a key kill.
Fourth Set Summary
- Green Bay used eight kills from the reigning Horizon League Player of the Year to take a slim 25-23 fourth-set win. The Phoenix led in the early portion of the set and NKU was able to tie it up at 11-11 with back-to-back kills from Briggs. The two teams traded points for the remainder of the set, with Green Bay ending the match with a 4-2 run.
- Briggs posted five more kills, and Bailey Western added three kills and three blocks.
Norse Notes
- Briggs had a career-high 18 kills to lead the Norse and also contributed three blocks.
- Brinkmann recorded a double-double of 11 kills and 15 digs, and Shelby Olsen also added a double-double with 48 assists and 12 digs.
- Terrill led the defense with 22 digs, along with six assists and a pair of aces.
- Laura Crawford was the fourth Norse with double-digit digs, adding 14.
- Western had nine kills and five bocks out of the middle, while Bagwell had nine kills and two blocks. Both middles hit over a .300 clip for the match.
- Green Bay hit .282 in the match, while NKU connected at a .219 clip. The Phoenix also had the advantage in digs, 89-78, and blocks, 10-7, but NKU had six aces while not surrendering an ace to Green Bay.
Up Next
- The Norse are back in Regents Hall tomorrow when they host UIC. First serve against the Flames is set for 4 p.m. ET and the match will be broadcast on ESPN+.
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