MT. PLEASANT, Mich. -- Central Michigan hit .326 as a team, and overcame dropping the first set, to defeat the Northern Illinois University volleyball team in four sets, 24-26, 25-21, 25-17, 25-15, on Friday night at McGuirk Arena. NIU freshman Kaylee Martin (Sterling, Ill./Sterling) tallied a team-high 12 kills and had a team-best 11 digs for her fifth consecutive double-double. 

"Central Michigan came out very physical and energetic after the break," said NIU head coach Ray Gooden. "They really put a lot of pressure on us with the serve and with points in transition. Credit to those guys, their serving put us under a lot of pressure, where we became very lopsided offensively. We work really hard to have balance because they helps us become the most effective we can be."

NIU (7-21, 6-7 MAC) led the opening set 22-16 until Central Michigan used an 8-2 burst to pull even at 24. With the set tied, the Huskies got a kill from Martin to earn a set point and finished the set with a block from sophomore Brinley Milbrath (Cedar Rapids, Iowa/John F. Kennedy) and junior Meg Wolowicz (Manitowoc, Wis./Manitowoc Lincoln) to take a 1-0 lead in the match. 

Milbrath finished the opening set with four kills on four swings; Wolowicz and Martin each added three kills in the first set. Kalina Smith led the Chippewas with six kills in the set while Jordan Bueter added five kills. 

Wolowicz finished the match with eight kills and four blocks, Milbrath finished with five kills. 

In the second set, Central Michigan took a quick 7-2 lead to open the set but the Huskies battled back to even the set, 16-16. The Chippewas scored four of the next five points to lead by three, 20-17. NIU trimmed the lead back to a pair three times, including 23-21, but Central Michigan used an ace and a kill from Bueter to win the set. 

Bueter collected four kills in the set to pace the Chippewas, Martin had five kills in the second to lead NIU. 

Central Michigan (14-11, 6-7 MAC) led in the third set, 15-9, before the Huskies trimmed the Chippewa lead back to just a pair, 18-16. A pair of NIU errors helped push the CMU lead back up to four and the Chippewas scored the final four points of the set to take a 2-1 lead. 

The Chippewas hit .306 in the third set, including seven kills from Smith.

In the fourth, CMU raced out to a 10-3 lead and never looked back as it hit .500 in the set with 16 kills and just two errors. Bueter had seven kills in the set to lead the Chippewas. 

Bueter finished the match with 19 kills while Smith added 18 kills and hit .483 for the match. As a team, Central Michigan hit .326 in the match and Megan Kern led the Chippewas with 18 digs. 

The Huskies will conclude the weekend on Saturday, Nov. 4, when they visit Eastern Michigan in the final road match of the regular season. First serve against the Eagles is scheduled for 4 p.m. CT, and will be available on ESPN3.