ST. PAUL – The University of Northwestern volleyball team went 2-0 for the second day of the UNW Labor Day Tournament, beating Loras College in five and No. 20 ranked team Augsburg College in four Saturday afternoon.


 
GAME 1  vs Loras College (25-17, 25-21, 25-19, 25-23)
 
Loras began the match with two runs of three, gaining a comfortable 11-6 lead. Behind by at least three points for the remainder of the set, the Eagles struggled to fill the deficit against the Duhawks' 16 kills spread amongst the net. Northwestern came back to win the next set, tying the match. It wasn't until set five that the Eagles finally came out with a comfortable lead, finishing the tie-breaking game with a score of 15-8.
 
With a lower hitting percentage than the Duhawks, the Eagles managed to still claim the match with 51 kills. Lindsey Peterson (Sheffield, Iowa/West Fork) and Toria Gillson (St. Cloud, Minn./St. Cloud Christian) led the pack with 13 and 10 kills. Gillson led with an impressive .250 percentage. Jackie Foster (Charles City, Iowa/Charles City) amassed an impressive four aces on top of her 25 digs.
 
 
GAME 2 vs. No. 20 Augsburg (25-23, 25-21, 25-23, 25-19)
 
Augsburg came from behind winning the first set with a steady lead. Four Auggie errors were made in the first six points of the second set, prompting the first timeout. Leesa Hulstrand (Eden Prairie, Minn./Eden Prairie) had quite a start to the set with three kills from the right side. Going back and forth for most of the match, Northwestern took a 16-10 lead after a few momentum-building kills. A Vander Galien block shut down AC as they lead 19-12. Augsburg made a four point push in the final stretch, but the home team claimed the second set. Lydia Palkert (Excelsior, Minn./Southwest Christian) racked five kills in the second set alone.
 
Northwestern held the lead for most of the third set, winning 25-23. The home team continued their strong push with a 6-0 start to the fourth set. Palkert continued to feel the heat with her attacks, putting the score at 8-3. After soaring to a seven-point lead, Augsburg called their first timeout with a score of 16-9. As the visitors tried to regain possession, UNW launched to a 20-9 advantage.  The Auggies fought back only down 23-18. Unable to be stopped, Northwestern secured the victory.
 
Leesa Hulstrand (Eden Prairie, Minn./Eden Prairie) had her career best game leading with 14 kills. Kaelyn Kilbo (Delano, Minn./Delano) also had her career-best game with 30 assists. With a hitting percentage of .232, the Eagles ended their weekend on a good note.

Northwestern will play at home against Bethel University on Wednesday night at 7 p.m. in the Ericksen Center. A J.V. match will take place at 5 p.m. prior to the varsity match.