ST. PAUL, Minn. – The University of Northwestern Volleyball team followed up clinching the outright UMAC regular season championship Friday night with a sweep over Martin Luther on Saturday, capping off another perfect UMAC regular season. UNW was in control from start-to-finish in the 25-13, 25-10, 25-23, Senior Day win, and finished the regular season with a 21-5 overall record, and a 12-0 conference mark.
Addeson Jenniges (Walnut Grove, Minn./Westbrook-Walnut Grove) got the good vibes rolling early with a pair of aces to help the Eagles take a 4-0 lead in set one. An 8-0 Northwestern run later in the set stretched the lead to 17-5, and
Miranda Wyatt (Manhattan, Mont./Manhattan Christian) tallied kills on UNW's final two points to win the opener, 25-13.
After Martin Luther scored the first two points of the second set, a pair of kills and a block from Wyatt sparked a 6-0 Eagle run, capped off by a
Grace Moravchik (Mason, Wis./Ashland) ace. A 7-0 run, featuring two
Alana Costello (Mead, Colo./Mead) aces, made it a 13-1 stretch in total, and put the hosts firmly in control at 13-3. Two blocks and kill from
Norah Jaeb (Plymouth, Minn./Robbinsdale Armstrong) in the closing moments gave Northwestern a dominant, 25-10 win heading into set three.
Despite scoring just 23 points combined in the first two sets, the Knights gave UNW everything it could handle in set three. The Eagles' 10-6 lead quickly evaporated as MLC kept things even until a 5-0 run gave Northwestern some cushion at 22-17. The Knights would not go away quietly, pulling within one on multiple occasions, but a Wyatt kill staved off the comeback effort and finished off the sweep with a 25-23 win.
Ana Egge (Rapid City, S.D./Rapid City Christian) tallied another nine kills on .368 hitting, adding three blocks and an ace. Wyatt hit .313 on her way to eight kills and four blocks, while Jaeb chipped in seven kills and three blocks.
Abbie Brand (Pella, Iowa/Pella) was dominant on defense with five blocks, and Costello led the Eagles with 13 digs, in addition to two aces.
Libby Weckman (Shakopee, Minn./Southwest Christian) added 10 digs, 14 assists and an ace, while Jenniges chipped in 17 assists and two aces.
With the regular season in the rear-view, the Eagles will turn their attention to the postseason. As the No. 1 seed in the UMAC Volleyball Tournament, Northwestern will host Crown in a semifinal showdown at 7:00 PM on Wednesday, November 11th.
