MORRIS, Minn. – The University of Northwestern women's volleyball team opened up the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) Preview Tournament on Friday evening. The Eagles swept the College of St. Scholastica before topping the University of Minnesota-Morris, 3-1, in the nightcap. Wrapping up the evening competition, the Eagles rise to an 8-2 record overall.
 
UNW vs. St. Scholastica (25-22, 25-14, 25-17)
In what was a hard-fought match, the Eagles were able to fight their way to a 25-22 success in set one. Running away with set two (25-14) and three (25-17), the women accomplished a 3-0 sweep against the Saints to top off game one of the night.

On the leaderboard was Freya Hanson (Otsego, Minn./St. Michael-Albertville) who led the team with 13 kills, as teammate Leesa Hulstrand (Eden Prairie, Minn./Eden Prairie) snagged 18 assists, and Lindsey Peterson (Sheffield, Iowa/West Fork) with 17 digs.

 To conclude, UNW tabbed 42 kills, 11 blocks, 40 assists, and 60 digs.
 
Northwestern vs. UM-Morris (18-25, 25-11, 25-22, 25-13)
The Eagles came out strong in their attempt to snatch set one, but the Cougars clawed their way to a 25-18 win to take an early lead. Out for revenge in set two, Northwestern overpowered UM-Morris in a 25-11 match to even the score.

As both teams were tied 1-1 heading into set three, Northwestern was able to beat Morris by just three points to close the 25-22 win. To cap off the contest, the Eagles succeeded in bringing home a 25-12 triumph in set four to seal a 4-1 victory over the Cougars.

Closing the match, Peterson buried 16 kills, as teammate Shanay Gonder (Cedar Rapids, Iowa/Washington) marked 11 and Abby Vander Galien (Chanhassen, Minn./Southwest Christian) 10. Gonder and Vander Galien also shined in the arena of blocks, as they accumulated 12 together. Topping off the fight in assists was Hulstrand with 20 and Kaelyn Kilbo (Delano, Minn./Delano) with 18. Lastly, a trio-high of 16 digs on the night were Peterson, Hanson, and Jackie Doering (Charles City, Iowa/Charles City).

As a team, UNW tallied 53 kills, 11 blocks, 47, assists, and 76 digs.

Northwestern will continue play tomorrow, as they will take on UW-Superior at 11 p.m., and Martin Luther at 1 p.m. Fans can visit unweagles.com for more information.