BUFFALO, NY – The Northern Illinois University volleyball team had to settle for a split of its two-match series against the Buffalo Bulls Saturday after a 3-0 (25-21, 25-23, 25-14) win by the Bulls at Alumni Arena. It's the fourth series split for the Huskies in the last five weeks.
 
Katie Jablonski (Elburn, Ill./New Hampshire) led NIU offensively with 10 kills, hitting .259 with nine digs. JoDee Kovanda (Lockport, Ill./West Florida) added seven kills, five digs, and two blocks. Samantha Juarez (Batavia, Ill./Batavia) led the match with 17 digs.
 
"There were moments where we were making some decent plays and doing the little things," said head coach Ray Gooden. "Buffalo just did that better and for longer stretches today. The biggest thing for us right now is understanding that from point to point, set to set, night to night there are things that are consistent and some that have variety. We're still working on playing through that variety."
 
Buffalo (2-14, 2-14 MAC) started the match off on the right foot with a 6-2 run capped off by a block from Courtney Okwara and Kyndal Bacon. The Huskies got within one at 8-7 on back-to-back Jablonski kills. The Bulls grew the lead back to four at 14-10 on consecutive Milla Malik kills. NIU used a 5-2 run midway through the set to get within one at 16-15 on a Jablonski kill. The two teams traded points up to 21-19 when a Malik kill started a 3-0 Buffalo run that gave the Bulls set point at 24-19. NIU fought off two set points but Buffalo took the set 25-21 to go up 1-0 in the match.
 
NIU (7-9, 7-9 MAC) grabbed the early momentum in set two with a 5-0 run punctuated by a block and a kill from Kovanda. The Huskies led 10-6 when an Emma Gielas kill sparked an 11-2 Buffalo run that put the Bulls ahead 17-12. NIU answered right back with an 8-1 run of its own, getting four kills from Jablonski and Brianna Scuric (East Troy, Wis./East Troy) and a block from Angie Gromos (West Chicago, Ill./West Chicago) and Grace Balensiefer (Lafayette, Ind./McCutcheon), to go back in front 20-18. The Bulls won the next four points to take a 22-20 lead. The two teams then traded points the rest of the way, with a Lexi Nordmann kill putting Buffalo up 2-0 in the match with a 25-23 win.
 
The Huskies took an early 6-3 lead in the third set behind service aces from Juarez and Ella Mihacevich (Brunswick, Ohio/Padua Franciscan). Buffalo then rattled off six straight points to take a 9-6 advantage after a Gielas kill. The Bulls ran away with the third set using an 11-2 run to go up 21-10. Buffalo hit .345 in the final set, holding NIU to a -.065 to take it 25-14 and the match 3-0.
 
Buffalo hit .291 for the match and held NIU to a .150 hitting mark. The Bulls also held an 8.0-5.0 edge in blocks. Gielas led all players with 13 kills and hit .611.
 
NIU returns to Victor E. Court on Tuesday, March 16^th to take on the Western Michigan Broncos. First serve is set for 6 p.m. Although fans are unable to attend NIU volleyball matches this season, you can still make your presence felt in Victor E. Court by purchasing a cutout as part of the "Huskie Howl" presented by First National Bank of Omaha (FNBO). For just $60, fans can put their image on a cutout that will remain in place in Victor E. Court for all NIU volleyball matches during the 2021 spring season. Net proceeds from all fan cutouts will benefit the Huskie Athletic Fund. Click here to order your cutout.

 
--NIU--