HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. – Northern Kentucky volleyball returns home to Regents Hall this weekend to open up Horizon League action. On Friday, Sept. 27, the Norse host Youngstown State at 6 p.m. with a broadcast on ESPN+. The weekend concludes on Saturday, Sept. 28, with a 4 p.m. match versus Cleveland State.
LAST TIME OUT: The Norse finished runner-up in the WKU Volleyball Invitational, ending the nonconference portion of the schedule with a 7-5 record that includes wins over all three opponents that appeared in the 2018 NCAA Tournament. NKU pushed host Western Kentucky, which was the second-straight opponent that the Norse faced that is receiving votes in the AVCA poll, to five sets but fell just short in the deciding set. NKU bounced back on Saturday with a pair of sweeps over Samford and Tulsa, serving up a staggering 22 aces between the six sets.
Abby Kanakry and
Bailey Western were named to the all-tournament team.
NORSE VS. THE NATION: NKU ranks among the nation's top-100 in several statistical categories through two weeks of competition. Most notably, the Norse are the No. 30 in the nation when it comes to opponent hitting percentage, as NKU has kept its opponents to a .170 clip. That number is aided by NKU's ability to keep its opponent out of system with strong serving and staunch defense at the net, as NKU ranks 31st nationally with 1.74 aces per set and 43th with 2.48 blocks per set. The Norse are also No. 52 in digs per set (15.96) and 96th in kills per set (13.00). Individually,
Miranda Wucherer and
Ashton Terrill are first and second in the Horizon League in total aces with 21 and 22, respectively, which is good for 44th and 52nd nationally. Terrill also ranks in the top-100 with 4.51 digs per set, and
Bailey Western and
Natalie Hardig rank in the top-75 in total blocks with 54 and 50, respectively.
MILESTONE TRACKER: Over the weekend, junior libero
Ashton 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 1,218 digs and is 30 digs away from tying Anna Prickel (2010-13) for ninth.
Senior setter
Shelby Olsen is also on pace to become just the third setter in NKU history to record at least 2,000 assists and 1,000 digs. Olsen currently has 2,388 career assists, good for 10th all-time, along with 925 digs. With 75 more digs, she would join Molly Donovan (1995-98; 4,971 assists/1,005 digs) and Taylor Snyder (2013-16; 4,535 assists/1,116 digs) in the exclusive club.
SCOUTING YOUNGSTOWN STATE: The Penguins were picked to finish last in the Horizon League Preseason Poll, but the team has seen success in the second season of head coach Aline Scott with a 6-7 record. Youngstown State recently swept Robert Morris, a team that entered the match as one of the few undefeated teams in the nation at 10-0. Senior outside hitter Aleah Hughes has been leading the Penguins with 2.80 kills per set to go with 3.28 digs per set, while freshman outside Brooklen Pe'a is not far behind with 2.79 kps and 2.74 dps. Alyssa Oswald also averages over two kills per set as the team's third pin hitter. Alexia Byrnes runs the 5-1 offense, dishing out 8.93 assists per set. In the back row, Margaux Thompson has made the transition from outside hitter to libero, and is averaging 3.76 digs per set. YSU has performed well from the service line, ranking 59th nationally with 1.63 aces per set.
NKU has won all eight of its meetings with the Penguins. The two teams last squared off on Oct. 31, 2018, when the Norse swept YSU, 25-14, 25-17, 25-10.
SCOUTING CLEVELAND STATE: The Vikings enter the weekend at 4-7, but went through a grueling nonconference schedule that included No. 12 Pittsburgh, No. 15 Kentucky, (RV) Cincinnati, and another pair of Power 5 opponents in South Carolina and Indiana. Cleveland State has posted wins over Butler, Charlotte, Niagara and Kent State. The Vikings rely heavily on their middles, with Trinniti Hall and Hanna Greene averaging almost a combined seven kills per set. Hall leads with way with 3.50 kps to rank second in the Horizon League, and does so at a .299 clip to rank sixth in the league. Greene also sits in the top-10 in both categories, ranking fifth with 3.25 kps and ninth with a .290 hitting percentage. Not surprising considering their ability to run the middles often, the Vikings are second in the league and 15th in the nation with 17.15 digs per set, led by sophomore libero Lindsey Tout. CSU also defends well at the net, ranking 45th nationally with 2.48 blocks per set.
Cleveland State leads the all-time series, 10-5, but the Norse have won the previous two matchups. NKU snapped an eight-match losing skid to the Vikings in five sets on Nov. 10, 2018, before sweeping Cleveland State in the semifinals of the 2018 Horizon League Championship on Nov 17.
