FAIRBORN, Ohio – The Northern Kentucky volleyball program left it all on the court as the Norse fell in five sets to No. 2 Green Bay (25-21, 25-22, 22-25, 21-25, 13-15) in the Horizon League Semifinals inside McLin Gymnasium on Saturday evening.
NKU has made itself into a mainstay when it comes to deciding the conference crown. Ever since the Norse entered the Horizon League in 2015, Northern Kentucky has made it to either the conference's semifinal or championship match in each of the past nine years.
The Norse will conclude the season 18-13 overall to go with four Horizon League postseason honors earned by
Joy Banks (All-League First Team),
Abby Kanakry (All-League First Team),
Anna Burke (All-League Second Team) and
Ava Hoying (All-Freshman Team), to go with an All-Academic selection by Burke.
THE BASICS
FINAL SCORE: Northern Kentucky – 2, Green Bay – 3
SET SCORES: 25-21, 25-22, 22-25, 21-25, 13-15
LOCATION: McLin Gymnasium – Fairborn, Ohio
RECORDS: NKU: 18-12 (12-6 HL) | OAK: 17-14 (11-7 HL)
MATCH NOTES
-
Abby Kanakry paced the Norse with 19 kills.
Joy Banks and
Ava Hoying were right behind with 15 and 11, respectively.
- Kanarky finished her standout career with 1,324 kills, a mark that ranks 13th all-time in school history.
-
Torie Houston posted a match-best three aces.
-
Skyy Smith recorded six blocks while Kanakry and
Allie Siefke finished with four apiece.
- Houston also led the Norse with 28 assists.
Katy Yopko chipped in 23 of her own.
- Burke and her 20 digs led NKU in the category. Her 1,749 career digs are now ranked second-most in program history.
- Northern Kentucky jumped out to a 2-0 lead after the Norse picked up a 25-21 decision in the opening set and a 25-22 victory in the second.
- Green Bay battled right back to escape with the victory as the Phoenix took sets three (25-22), four (25-21) and five (15-13) in a tightly contested fight between the two sides.
FOLLOW NORSE VOLLEYBALL
Get in the game and follow Northern Kentucky's NCAA Division I women's volleyball team through
@NKUNorseVB on X,
@NKUNorseVBall on Instagram,
nkunorsevball on Facebook and
subscribe to the NKU Norse Youtube channel.
