HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. – Northern Kentucky volleyball heads into the postseason riding a five-match winning streak and will be the No. 4 seed in the 2019 Horizon League Volleyball Championship, hosted by Wright State. The Raiders claimed sole ownership of the regular-season title to earn the top seed, while Milwaukee also earned a first-round bye with the No. 2 seed. NKU will square off against No. 5 UIC in the first round of the tournament, with first serve at 6 p.m. ET on Friday, Nov. 22. The lowest remaining seed between that match and the No. 3 Green Bay versus No. 6 Oakland match will advance to play the Raiders on Saturday, with the highest remaining seed set to face the Panthers. All matches of the tournament will be streamed on ESPN+.
LAST TIME OUT: The Norse defeated Cleveland State and Youngstown State on the road to secure the No. 4 seed in the Horizon League Championship.
Anna Brinkmann and
Shelby Olsen both recorded double-doubles in each victory.
Ashton Terrill added a pair of 20-dig matches, sending her past Colleen Kaufman (1992-95) for fourth on NKU's all-time career digs list.
AWARDS SEASON: Five different Norse pulled in Horizon League honors this week. On Nov. 19, sophomore setter
Miranda Wucherer was named to the Horizon League All-Academic Team, honoring her team-leading 5.92 assists per set as well as her 4.00 grade point average. On Thursday afternoon, the Horizon League announced its postseason awards, with Brinkmann, Terrill,
Reilly Briggs and
Abby Kanakry earning distinction. Brinkmann was recognized as the only outside hitter on the All-Horizon League First Team after ranking in the league's top-10 in kills, digs, aces and points per set. Terrill pulled in honorable mention after ranking third in the league in both digs and aces per set. Briggs and Kanakry both earned a spot on the all-freshman team for their work on the rightside attack.
UPWARD TREND: NKU had its highest RPI in program history on Oct. 7 and has continued to stay ranked among some of the nation's top teams in the No. 55 spot. The Horizon League has also seen continued success in the rating percentage index as it is one of just six Division I conferences to have five or more teams in the top 100, with Wright State, Milwaukee, Green Bay and UIC joining the Norse.
NORSE VS. THE NATION: NKU ranks among the nation's top-100 in several statistical categories. NKU's best statistics come from its defensive prowess, as the Norse rank 13th in the nation with 17.78 digs per set, 48th with 2.43 blocks per set and 57th with a .180 opponent hitting percentage. This season, the Norse have held five opponents to under a .100 hitting percentage. The Norse also rank 67th nationally and first in the Horizon League with 1.53 aces per set.
MILESTONE TRACKER: In the final tournament of the nonconference slate, junior libero Terrill broke into the all-time top-10 list for career digs, surpassing Amber Timmons' mark of 1,205 set between the 2001-04 seasons. Terrill currently has 1,555 digs and is 121 digs away from tying Kylee Tarantino (2009-12) for third.
Senior setter Olsen recorded her 1,000th career dig at Green Bay on Oct. 19, becoming just the third Norse setter to amass at least 2,000 assists and 1,000 digs in a career. She joins Molly Donovan (1995-98) and Taylor Snyder (2013-16) in the exclusive club.
SCOUTING UIC: The Flames posted a 9-7 record in league play, but lost the head-to-head tiebreaker with NKU as the Norse won five sets against UIC this season compared to three sets won for the Flames. UIC is led by All-Horizon League First-Team honoree Michelle Glover, who averaged 2.23 kills per set at a .311 clip to go with 1.18 blocks per set. The Flames spread their offense out well among the 6-2 offense, with four Flames averaging just over two kills per set. UIC's defense has paved the way for much of its success as it ranks 33rd nationally with 16.88 digs per set and 37th with 2.49 blocks per set. On the offensive side, UIC runs a fast tempo attack on both pins.
NKU holds a 7-2 advantage in the all-time series with UIC. The two teams split the regular season, with each picking up a win on their home court. NKU won the most recent meeting, sweeping the Flames on Nov. 2.
SCOUTING WRIGHT STATE: The Raiders won their first-ever Horizon League title this season after going 13-3 in league play. Wright State brought in a slew of postseason awards, with Jenna Story named the Horizon League Defensive Player of the Year while Allie Matters was named the coach of the year, and four other Raiders earned all-league distinction. Wright State leads the nation with 19.69 digs per set behind Story's 6.41 dps, which puts her second nationally. The Raiders' staunch defense has them holding teams to a .138 hitting percentage, which is good for fifth nationally. Offensively, Wright State has a balanced attack with five Raiders averaging above two kills per set, led by Teddie Sauer's 2.67 kps. Sauer earned Horizon League honorable mention, while attackers Celia Powers (2.39 kps) and Nyssa Baker (2.37 kps), along with setter Lainey Stephenson (9.67 assists per set) were named to the All-Horizon League First Team.
Northern Kentucky leads the all-time series with the Raiders, 21-15, but Wright State claimed both matches this season. In the most recent meeting on Oct. 25, the Raiders claimed a 3-1 victory over the Norse.
SCOUTING MILWAUKEE: The Panthers had been leading the standings for much of the Horizon League season, but an 0-2 record in the penultimate week of play dropped Milwaukee out of its favorable position. Milwaukee secured the No. 2 seed and a first-round bye with a thrilling five-set win over Green Bay in the last match of the season. The Panthers are led offensively by All-Horizon League First Team honorees, Carmen Heilemann and Ari Miller. Heilemann paces the team with 2.95 kills per set on the right side, while Miller, the 2019 Horizon League Freshman of the Year, adds 2.53 kills and 0.98 blocks per set. The back row is held down by all-league honorable mention Jess Grabowski, who ranked fourth in the league with 5.00 digs per set.
Milwaukee holds a 6-4 lead in the all-time series with the Norse and the two teams split the regular season. The Panthers won on their home court on Oct. 11 before NKU posted a four-set Senior Day win over Milwaukee on Nov. 10.
SCOUTING GREEN BAY: The Phoenix, who won the 2018 regular season and tournament, dipped to third in the standings after the regular-season finale at Milwaukee. Green Bay is led by the standout duo of Taylor Wolf and Maddie Yoss, the two-time Horizon League Player and Setter of the Year, respectively. Wolf dominated the league with 4.48 kills per set while also averaging 3.13 digs per set. Yoss dished out a league-best 10.89 assists per set during the league slate, and also helps the Phoenix rank 19th nationally in digs per set by chipping in 2.97 dps. Brenna Hesse, who was named to the Horizon League All-Freshman Team, led the Phoenix with 3.81 digs per set out of the libero position, but Green Bay has seen fellow freshman Annelise Sparks don the libero jersey for the past few matches.
Green Bay holds a narrow 8-7 advantage in the all-time series with the Norse and won both meetings this season. Last year, the Norse faced the Phoenix in the championship match of the league tournament.
SCOUTING OAKLAND: The Golden Grizzlies posted an 8-8 record to earn the last spot in the Horizon League Championship. Oakland's offense is led by Taylor Dellinger and Jamie Walling, who ranked second (3.60) and third (3.28) in kills, respectively, per set during league play. Walling was named to the Horizon League honorable mention list, as was libero Lindsay Wightman, who ranked second in the league with 5.87 digs per set. Like many of the Horizon League schools, Oakland is able to extend rallies and ranks 32nd nationally with 16.89 digs per set.
Oakland is the leader in the all-time series with the Norse, 12-4. The two programs split the regular season, with each picking up a win on the road. Oakland won a five-set decision in Highland Heights on Oct. 9, which the Norse avenged by sweeping the Golden Grizzlies at their place on Nov. 6.
