ST. PAUL – The No. 18 University of Northwestern women's volleyball team (28-3, 8-0) put the finishing touches on its unblemished conference slate Friday night, defeating visiting Martin Luther College (10-21, 5-3) on Senior Night inside the Ericksen Center to earn the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) regular season crown. The conference title marks the sixth-straight season the Eagles have won or shared the conference championship and the ninth honor in the last 10 years. UNW – who will be making its seventh-consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance – won by set scores of 25-15, 25-22, 25-12.

Northwestern honored its three seniors (Kylee Thiner (Ankeny, Iowa/Des Moines Christian), Toria Gillson (St. Cloud, Minn./St. Cloud Christian) and Shanay Gonder (Cedar Rapids, Iowa/Washington)) prior to first serve. The senior class has been a part of four-straight UMAC Championships and four-consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances. They helped the Eagles compile an eye-popping 43-1 record in UMAC contests during their four years.

Northwestern hit .305 and held Martin Luther to a .100 hitting percentage, while also posting 59 points to the Knights' 29.

Lindsey Peterson (Sheffield, Iowa/West Fork) turned in another double-double performance with her match-high 21 kills and 13 digs. Toria Gillson (St. Cloud, Minn./St. Cloud Christian) added nine and Freya Hanson (Otsego, Minn./St. Michael-Albertville) contributed eight to the offensive attack. Leesa Hulstand recorded 25 assists, while Kaelyn Kilbo (Delano, Minn./Delano) notched 15 on the night. Jackie Doering (Charles City, Iowa/Charles City) led all players with 19 digs and Hanson racked up 15 to aid the Eagles' defensive effort.

Head Coach Beth Wilmeth has guided Northwestern to 10 regular season conference championships in her 13-year tenure.

The Eagles will close out the regular season portion of their schedule with a 2 p.m. contest at regionally-ranked Wartburg College. Fans looking to follow the action in Waverly, Iowa, can watch live at www.unweagles.com.