NEW ULM, Minn.- #5 University of Northwestern Volleyball is officially entering the final stretch of their 2023 regular season and on Tuesday night they picked up their 22
nd win of the season. The Eagles traveled to New Ulm for a road game with Martin Luther and the Eagles finished the season sweep of the Knights by sweeping them for a second time in 2023.
All three sets looked very similar and they all ended with nearly identical scores (25-11, 25-11, 25-10). UNW ended the game with a team hitting percentage of .381 compared to MLC's final percentage of .041. The Eagles had 37 kills on the night while the Knights finished with a three set total of 22.
Statistically, the Knights put together their best performance of the night in the opening set. MLC finished with a hitting percentage of .242 in set one which was by far their best percentage of any set in the match. However, they ran into an Eagles' team that played a nearly flawless offensive game in the first set. UNW's hitting percentage in the first set was an eye-popping .567. The Eagles led the opening set 10-5 before they rattled off seven straight points to pull ahead by 12 points. During that run
Marley Aune (New Brighton, Minn./Avail Academy) had two kills,
Hannah Rich (Lakeville, Minn./Lakeville North) had an ace, and a pair of Graces (
Grace Strickfaden (Norwood-Young America, Minn./NYA) and
Grace Moravchik (Mason, Wis./Ashland)) each added kills. This stretch would propel the Eagles to their 25-11 win in the first set.
The second set, despite ending in the same score as the first set, played out a little bit differently. This time, it was not a long Eagle run that led them to the victory like it was in set one, however, it was consistency throughout the set that allowed them to take a 2-0 lead in the match. UNW never scored more than four consecutive points during this set, but on the flip side, they never allowed Martin Luther to score more than two consecutive points. This refusal to allow the Knights to keep the serve and gain any momentum powered the Eagles to a 25-11 win and a 2-0 match lead.
The third set was once again defined by long scoring runs by the Eagles similar to the opening set. Early in the final set, the two teams went back and forth. The fifth ranked team in the country held a slim 7-5 lead. A handful of errors from MLC paired with kills from
Kiera Brown (Columbia Falls, Mont./Columbia Falls) and
Grace Moravchik (Mason, Wis./Ashland) allowed UNW to score eight consecutive points and take a 15-5 lead. The Eagles' pace would not slow up later in the set and they cruised to a 25-10 victory in the third set and took the match via a 3-0 sweep.
Abby Glanzer (Brandon, S.D./Sioux Falls Christian), the reigning UMAC Offensive Player of the Week, had a match high 13 kills and added 10 digs to chip in defensively.
Marley Aune (New Brighton, Minn./Avail Academy), who was recognized as the UMAC Defensive Player of the Week this past week, contributed offensively and defensively with eight kills and two blocks.
Grace Moravchik (Mason, Wis./Ashland) and
Ari Schmidt (Albany, Minn./Holdingford) had five kills each.
Grace Strickfaden (Norwood-Young America, Minn./NYA) led the Eagles with 18 assists and also put down two kills.
Hannah Gadient (Goodhue, Minn./Goodhue) had 11 assists.
Marylyn Schroyer (Ft. Collins, Colo./Ft. Collins) had 12 digs and
Hannah Rich (Lakeville, Minn./Lakeville North) was right behind her with 11 of her own.
The Eagles are now 10-0 in UMAC play and will look to add another win to that tally on Friday, October 27
th in Mankato. UNW will play a road game against Bethany Lutheran starting at 7:00pm.
