MOUNT PLEASANT, MI – The Northern Illinois University volleyball team was swept for the second consecutive match Saturday, falling 3-0 (12-25, 15-25, 16-25) to the Central Michigan Chippewas at McGuirk Arena.
"I thought we did some positive things, but just couldn't win the tough points tonight," said head coach
Ray Gooden. "I thought our serving and our serve receive did some good things. Central Michigan is playing at a real high level and we couldn't string points together like they did."
Central Michigan (20-4, 10-2 MAC) broke free in the first set with a 6-1 run, capped by a pair of Kalina Smith kills, to take a 12-6 lead. NIU got within four at 12-8 on a
Peyton Tilly (Barrington, Ill./Barrington) kill, but the Chippewas would go on another run. Sparked by a block by Maddie Whitfield and Grace Butler, Central Michigan won five of the next six points to go ahead 16-9. The Chippewas closed the set on a 6-2 run to win it 25-12. Central Michigan hit .370 in the opening set, using five blocks to hold NIU to a -.192 hitting percentage.
NIU (8-18, 5-7 MAC) and Central Michigan traded points to start the second set, but a Maddie Whitfield kill and Megan Kern ace helped the Chippewas gain a 7-4 advantage. The Huskies got within one at 8-7 following a pair of blocks by
Jasmine Kemp (DeKalb, Ill./DeKalb) and
Brinley Milbrath (Cedar Rapids, Iowa/John F. Kennedy). Central Michigan used a 7-1 run, sparked by a pair of Smith kills, to take a 16-9 lead. NIU got within four with a 4-1 run highlighted by a pair of
Kennedy Wallace (Kansas City, Kan./Piper) kills to make the score 17-13. Central Michigan then won the next six points as three Kern aces put the Chippewas ahead 23-13. Kills by Anna Erickson and Lisbeth Rosario-Martinez gave Central Michigan the set 25-15 and a 2-0 lead in the match.
The Huskies jumped out to a 6-4 lead to start the third set behind kills from Tilly and Wallace as well as aces from
Kennedy Shelley (Burlington, Colo./Lewis-Palmer) and
Samantha Juarez (Batavia, Ill./Batavia). Central Michigan went on a 7-1 run that included two kills and an ace from Savannah Thompson to take a 13-8 advantage. The Chippewas grew their lead to nine at 19-10 on an Erickson kill and Butler ace. The Huskies would only get as close as seven the rest of the way as Central Michigan completed the sweep with a 25-16 win in the third set.
Wallace led NIU with eight kills in the match with Tilly adding six. Kemp had four blocks to lead the match. The Huskies hit just .053 for the match as Central Michigan hit .375.
NIU opens a three-match homestand on Friday, Nov. 8 against Toledo. First serve is at 6 p.m.
--NIU--
