ST. PAUL, Minn. – On an evening where many will be glued to who wins and who loses, the first winner of the night was the University of Northwestern Volleyball team; and it was a landslide victory. Northwestern rolled to a sweep of Concordia College (Minn.) inside the friendly confines of the Ericksen Center. It was the fourth consecutive sweep for UNW, who is now 19-8 on the season after Tuesday's non-conference win.
The first set was tied at three apiece early, but the Eagles exploded for a 12-1 run to open up a 15-4 advantage.
Miranda Wyatt (Manhattan, Mont./Manhattan Christian) and
Marley Aune (New Brighton, Minn./Avail Academy) each had three kills in the run. Concordia answered back with five straight, and eventually was able to pull within five at 18-13. A 4-0 spurt featuring a kill and an ace from
Mikayla Wilber (Coon Rapids, Minn./Coon Rapids) put Northwestern back in the driver's seat at 22-13, and it was able to put up the final three points of the set, thanks to two kills by
Ana Egge (Rapid City, S.D./Rapid City Christian) and one more from Aune, to win it, 25-13. Aune finished the set with five kills and Wyatt had four.
Set two was tied at four despite two more early kills from Aune, but UNW went on a 9-0 tear to seize control once again. Wyatt had two kills and two blocks to lead the charge. The Eagles continued to gradually expand their lead, scoring multiple points for every single point the Cobbers scored. Concordia made a late push with a 4-0 run after the set had reached set point, but
Anna Olsen's (Randolph, Minn./Randolph) third kill of the set ended things at 25-14.
The third and final set did not start as tight as its predecessors. A variety of Eagles, including setter
Grace Strickfaden (Norwood-Young America, Minn./NYA), picked up kills as the home team surged ahead, 12-4. The lead continued to grow as
Ari Schmidt (Albany, Minn./Holdingford) went on a heater, and an ace from
Addeson Jenniges (Walnut Grove, Minn./Westbrook-Walnut Grove) made it 20-8, Northwestern. Wyatt and
Hannah Rich (Lakeville, Minn./Lakeville North) put the exclamation point on a 4-0 run that ended the set and the match. The third-set victory was the biggest of the night for UNW at 25-10 as they achieved yet another sweep.
The story of the night was the dominance by Northwestern's middle blockers. Aune finished the night with 11 kills and four blocks, while Wyatt contributed 10 and six, respectively. Schmidt tallied eight kills and Olsen six, to go along with three blocks. Wilber logged a game-high 11 digs, while Rich and
Abby Glanzer (Brandon, S.D./Sioux Falls Christian) each contributed eight. Strickfaden and Jenniges each dished out a game-high 17 assists. As a team, the Eagles hit an astonishing .457 compared to just .012 for Concordia.
The long homestand for Northwestern will continue Friday night with one of the biggest matches of the year for UNW. Minnesota Morris will come to the Ericksen Center as the two teams battle at the top of the UMAC standings. First serve is scheduled for 7:00 PM Friday night.
