-
3
Winner Northern Ky. NKU 2-5,0-0 Horizon
2
Duquesne DU 6-1,0-0 Atlantic 10
Winner
Northern Ky. NKU
2-5,0-0 Horizon
3
Final
2
Duquesne DU
6-1,0-0 Atlantic 10
Set Scores
Team 1 2 3 4 5 F
Northern Ky. NKU 26 25 18 16 15 (3)
Duquesne DU 24 23 25 25 12 (2)
1
Notre Dame ND 1-4,0-0 ACC
3
Winner Northern Ky. NKU 3-5,0-0 Horizon
Notre Dame ND
1-4,0-0 ACC
1
Final
3
Northern Ky. NKU
3-5,0-0 Horizon
Winner
Set Scores
Team 1 2 3 4 F
Notre Dame ND 24 16 28 25 (1)
Northern Ky. NKU 26 25 26 27 (3)

Game Recap: Women's Volleyball |

Norse Volleyball defeats Notre Dame, Duquesne in Friday Doubleheader

CHARLESTON, S.C. – Northern Kentucky University Norse volleyball opened the Steve Baumrind Invitational on Friday with a doubleheader, taking on Duquesne in the morning and Notre Dame in the afternoon. After a 1-5 start to the season, the defending Horizon League regular season champs responded with two big victories in Charleston. 

The Norse beat Duquesne in five sets, winning the first two by two points each, before dropping sets three and four by significant margins. NKU responded in the fifth set, never trailing for a 15-12 victory. 

In their match against Notre Dame, the Norse were down for nearly the entire opening set, but came storming back from a seven-point deficit and also trailed 24-20 before ending on a 6-0 run to win 26-24. Northern Kentucky dominated in set two, winning 25-16 and hitting .458. Despite hitting .278 in the third set, the Norse fell 28-26 to the Irish before bouncing back with a 27-25 set four win. 

THE BASICS – MATCH ONE
FINAL SCORE: Northern Kentucky – 3, Duquesne – 2
LOCATION: TD Arena – Charleston, SC (Steve Baumrind Invitational)
RECORDS: Northern Kentucky: 2-5 (0-0 HL), Duquesne: 6-1 (0-0 A10)

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
– Statistically, Northern Kentucky was bested in every category. The Norse recorded just six aces to Duquesne's 15, had 67 points to DU's 86, and hit .153 while the Dukes hit .169. 
– Sydney Bray shined with 14 kills on a .407 hitting percentage, four aces, five blocks, and ten digs for a team-high 20.5 points. 
– Ivey Stocks had ten kills on 20 attacks with one error, also recording seven total blocks in the match. 
– Allison Risley posted nine points, recording eight kills and two blocks with nine digs. 
– Abby Pickard had 39 assists, an ace, 12 digs, and two blocks with three kills. 
– Daisy Cluxton recorded a match-high 22 digs. 
– Emma Adkins (five kills, seven digs), Ava Hoying (six kills, two blocks), and Ashley Sess (two kills, three blocks) featured in all five sets for the Norse. 

THE BASICS – MATCH TWO
FINAL SCORE: Northern Kentucky – 3, Notre Dame – 1
LOCATION: TD Arena – Charleston, SC (Steve Baumrind Invitational)
RECORDS: Northern Kentucky: 3-5 (0-0 HL), Notre Dame: 1-4 (0-0 ACC)

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
– Northern Kentucky bested the Irish in all major statistical categories, including hitting a season-high .256 with 63 kills. NKU totaled eight aces while allowing just two from Notre Dame, while recording seven blocks to UND's five. 
– It was another balanced attacking effort for the Norse, as Sydney Bray led the Norse with a team-high 15 kills on a .500 hitting percentage. She also had 12 digs and two aces in the match.
– Abby Pickard recorded 58 assists in the match, also recording four digs, two blocks, and an ace.
– Ivey Stocks posted 13 kills on a .440 hitting percentage, recording six total blocks.
– Luci Heid had 13 kills while hitting .240 with two blocks. 
– Daisy Cluxton led the match in digs for the second-straight game, recording 28. She also had an ace. 
– Zy'Aire Barr had eight kills with two blocks and two digs.
– Ashley Sess posted five kills with a block.
– Allison Risley went for four kills and three aces with seven digs. 

NORSE NOTES
  • Northern Kentucky's win over Notre Dame marked its first over a power conference opponent (ACC, Big Ten, Big 12, SEC). 
    • The Norse previously defeated Cincinnati in 2019 and Syracuse in 2013 but neither in a power conference at the date of the match. 
  • With her seventh kill in the second match, Norse senior Sydney Bray recorded her 1,000th career kill. 
  • Abby Pickard's 58 assists marked the second-highest single game total by any individual in a four-set match in NCAA Division I in 2026. Pickard currently has the second-highest single game assist total in both four-set matches (58) and five-set matches (65 on 8/28 vs. Fresno State)
  • Sydney Bray is now up to five double-doubles on the season, all of the kill-dig variety. 
  • Abby Pickard recorded her fourth double-double of the season with 39 assists and 12 digs vs. Duquesne. 
NEXT UP
– Northern Kentucky looks to cap the weekend with a win as they take on the hosts, College of Charleston at 1 PM on Saturday. 

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.
 
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