DeKALB, IL – The Northern Illinois University volleyball team wrapped up its 2021 spring season at Victor E. Court on Saturday afternoon, falling 3-0 (15-25, 17-25, 23-25) to the Ohio Bobcats.
 
Seniors Kennedy Wallace (Kansas City, Kan./Piper) and Kelsy Turskey (Prairie Grove, Ill./Prairie Ridge) were honored prior to the match for Senior Day. Wallace led the Huskies with 10 kills, hitting .316 with two blocks. Turskey had four digs on the day. Katie Jablonski (Elburn, Ill./New Hampshire) had nine kills, seven digs and two blocks.
 
"I think Kelsy Turskey has been one of the best teammates there has ever been here at NIU," said head coach Ray Gooden. "She's got a great attitude about everything and we're really thankful for what she's done for our program. Kennedy Wallace kept improving her game each year and was playing her best volleyball here at the end."
 
NIU (8-14, 8-14 MAC) took a 3-0 lead to start the match on kills from Wallace and Jablonski. Ohio came back with four of the next five points as back-to-back Maggie Nedoma kills tied the first 4-4. The Bobcats used a three-point run to take a 9-7 lead on a Tia Jimerson ace. Ohio grew its lead to five at 16-11 on a block by Jimerson and Olivia Margolies. The Huskies closed the gap to three at 16-13 but Ohio ran off seven straight points to take a 23-13 lead. The Bobcats hit .321 in the opening set to NIU's .059 and won it 25-15.
 
Ohio (12-7, 12-7 MAC) used a 6-0 run early in the second set to take an 8-3 lead, leading to an early NIU timeout. Jimerson had three kills and two blocks in that stretch. The advantage grew to eight when a Jimerson solo block made the score 12-4. The Huskies got as close as six points late in the set when a Brianna Scuric (East Troy, Wis./East Troy) kill put the score at 21-15. Kills from Margolies and Caitlin O'Farrell gave the Bobcats the second set 25-17 and a 2-0 lead in the match.
 
The Huskies took a quick 4-2 lead in the third as a block by Jablonski and Jasmine Kemp (DeKalb, Ill./DeKalb) capped a 3-0 run. The lead grew to three points as a Scuric kill made the score 9-6. NIU led 14-11 when a Vera Giacomazzi kill sparked a 4-1 Ohio run that tied the set at 15. The two teams traded points up to 19-19 when a Kemp kill started a 3-1 run that put the Huskies ahead 22-20. The Bobcats had one last run in them, winning five of the last six points to win the set 25-23 and the match 3-0.
 
"For us to work through all the different things we've had to do and how long the season has been, to not get a chance to do this and stay healthy with no pauses speaks a lot about our team and what their commitment has been," Gooden said. "There are a lot of things we've improved on. We're going to keep working on getting better together as a group."
 
Ohio hit .366 in the match and held NIU to a .196 hitting mark. The Bobcats had a 40-28 advantage in digs and a 10.0-6.0 edge in blocks. Jimerson led all players with 19 kills and six blocks.
 
NIU finishes the 2021 spring season with an 8-14 record.
 
--NIU--