ST. PAUL, Minn. – It was déjà vu in the Ericksen Center Wednesday night, as the 23
rd-ranked University of Northwestern Volleyball team swept North Central University at home for the second time in five days. Wednesday's matchup didn't feature the pageantry of Senior Night or a conference championship like Saturday did, but it was the next step in Northwestern's dream of a 13
th (and fourth consecutive) NCAA Division III National Tournament appearance. After a shaky start to the opening set, the top-seeded Eagles were able to settle in and sweep the fourth-seeded Rams for the third time this season, this time in the UMAC Tournament Semifinals, to advance to Saturday's championship match.
Things were not pretty early for UNW, who fell behind 5-0 in set one, causing the passionate North Central fans in attendance to explode.
Ari Schmidt (Albany, Minn./Holdingford) picked up a kill to get Northwestern on the board and
Mikayla Wilber (Coon Rapids, Minn./Coon Rapids) aced NCU seconds later, and the Eagles were officially in business. They would end up going on a 14-2 run to seize control of the opener.
Ana Egge (Rapid City, S.D./Rapid City Christian) and
Anna Olsen (Randolph, Minn./Randolph) each picked up two kills in that stretch, while
Marley Aune (New Brighton, Minn./Avail Academy) logged a kill and two blocks. Wilber notched another ace after two kills from Schmidt and one from Aune, giving UNW its first double-digit lead of the set at 22-12. Aune, Egge and
Abby Glanzer (Brandon, S.D./Sioux Falls Christian) carried the Eagles home, winning the first set by a 25-14 score.
NCU started out strong in the second set as well, overcoming two more Schmidt kills to take a 6-3 lead. Two straight Aune kills, followed by another from Glanzer, tied the set at six. The Rams were able to jump back in front, 11-9, but Northwestern rattled off a 13-2 run to open the floodgates. Egge had three kills in the spurt and Aune had one and a block. The Eagles would finish off the set, 25-16.
Set three began as a back-and-forth affair as well, before a 5-1 burst gave UNW a 10-7 edge. North Central was able to stay within an arm's reach for much of the set, despite Egge, Schmidt and Glanzer continuing to hit well from the outside. Leading 17-15, Northwestern was finally able to give itself a slightly bigger cushion at 20-15 thanks to kills by Egge and Schmidt, as well as a block by Schmidt and Aune. A 4-0 run for the Eagles closed it out, with Glanzer and Aune teaming for the clinching block.
Schmidt and Egge each logged 12 kills with matching .400 hitting percentages, and finished with three and two blocks, respectively. Glanzer put up nine kills and 13 digs, while Aune racked up eight kills on .533 hitting and seven blocks (three solo). Wilber finished with a game-high 15 digs and a pair of aces, while Wyatt blocked three NCU attacks.
Grace Strickfaden (Norwood-Young America, Minn./NYA) and
Addeson Jenniges (Walnut Grove, Minn./Westbrook-Walnut Grove) finished with 22 and 16 assists, respectively.
The 3-0 win means 2024 will be the 17
th consecutive year Northwestern (23-8) will play in the UMAC Tournament Championship game. They have won 13 of those 16 title game appearances and 16 overall in program history. Awaiting the Eagles in the championship match will be UW-Superior, who is the only UMAC team this UNW senior class has lost to in their careers. Superior defeated Minnesota Morris 3-1 in its UMAC Semifinal match. The Eagles and Yellowjackets split the season series, with each team winning on its home floor. Luckily for Northwestern, the rubber match will take place in the Ericksen Center at 7:00 PM on Saturday, November 16
th. The game can also be streamed on the Eagle Sports Network and the UMAC Sports Network app.
