EVANSVILLE, Ind. -- Northern Kentucky University Norse Volleyball opened its 2025 season on Friday, taking on both Saint Louis and Valparaiso. The Norse fell in three sets to the Billikens, before taking down the Beacons in the second match.

MATCH ONE - SLU
THE BASICS
FINAL SCORE: Northern Kentucky – 0, Saint Louis – 3
LOCATION: Liberty Arena – Evansville, Ind. 
RECORDS: Northern Kentucky: 0-1 (0-0 HL), SLU: 1-0 (0-0 A10)

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

• Sydney Bray led the Norse in both kills (ten) and blocks (three assists), hitting .300 in the opener with a line of 10-4-20. 
• Lucy Cluxton led the Norse in digs, posting 12 total.
• Freshman setter Abby Pickard led the Norse in assists, recording 19.
• The Billikens were very efficient in their win, hitting .270 as a team while the Norse hit .091.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Set one was the closest of the three, as an early back-and-forth affair saw the Norse lead 7-6. Saint Louis responded with a five-point run and kept rolling as they took a commanding 20-16 lead late in the set. NKU rallied to take a 22-21 lead, but SLU scored four of five in the final stretch to take the set win. 
• The Norse kept pace in set two until the halfway point, when a 5-0 run from the Billikens put NKU at a four-point deficit that they never recovered from. SLU won set two 25-19.
• Set three was a similar story, as Saint Louis went on a seven-point run halfway through the set, taking a 20-10 lead. NKU showed some life with a short rally, but the Billikens took the set 25-15.

MATCH TWO - VALPO

Northern Kentucky volleyball picked up its first victory of the season on Friday night, as the Norse took down Valparaiso in five sets. 

THE BASICS
FINAL SCORE: Northern Kentucky – 3, Valparaiso – 2
LOCATION: Liberty Arena – Evansville, Ind. 
RECORDS: Northern Kentucky: 1-1 (0-0 HL), Valparaiso: 1-1 (0-0 MVC)

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

• Allison Risley led the Norse on the offensive side, posting a game-high 19 kills while hitting .197. It marked the first double-double of the season for the sophomore, who also contributed 15 digs. 
• Defensively, it was Lucy Cluxton leading the way for the Norse with 29 digs. Cluxton also posted a trio of aces. 
• Abby Pickard racked up a game-high 32 assists, also posting 14 digs. 
• Ava Hoying finished with 13 kills, hitting .200, while Sydney Bray finished with five kills and 13 digs.
• NKU posted 38 block assists and three solos, as Katie Noschang led the way with 11 BA's. 

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Valparaiso took the first set, 25-19, pulling away early on a big six-point run that made it 13-7. The Beacons held a lead of at least five points from that point forward for the rest of the set. 
• NKU responded in set two for a close victory, winning 25-23. The Norse's first set victory of the year saw six blocks from NKU, as a big four-point run late in the set helped them tie things up at one. 
• The Norse took set three, 25-18, to give them a 2-1 lead. NKU hit .171 as a team in the set, which was their best mark after posting a .051 hitting percentage in each of the first two sets. A pair of five-point runs, starting at scores of 12-12 and 18-20, helped the Norse gain the upper hand. 
• Valparaiso took the fourth set, 25-21. The Beacons stormed out to an early 9-2 lead, and the Norse were never able to tie it up despite a good effort. 

UP NEXT
Northern Kentucky wraps up the USI Invitational on Saturday, taking on the hosts at 3 PM.

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.