DeKALB, Ill.—Ava Grevengoed (Shorewood, Ill./Joliet West) recorded her 11th double-double of the season as the Northern Illinois University Huskies volleyball team was swept in action by the Western Michigan University Broncos on Tuesday night (Nov. 5).
 
The Huskies (3-21, 1-13 MAC) posted set scores of 17-25, 16-25, 22-25 against the Broncos (14-11, 10-4 MAC).
 
"They are fighting and battling, and their effort is there. As a coach, I'm proud of their effort and fight despite the results," said NIU head coach Sondra D'Amore. "Western Michigan is a veteran and experienced team. We were high-error early and we bounced back in the third and cleaned our game up with tough serves. We look to get better each day and play to our potential. We have another tough team coming up and the focus is on us and how we can be better."
 
Game Recap
 
Emma McCartney (Chadron, Ohio/Chardon) grabbed an early pair of service aces as the Huskies opened the first set on a 4-0 run. Rylea Alvin (Randolph, Wis./Randolph) and Nikolette Nedic (Willowbrook, Ill./Hinsdale Central) added early kills for the Huskies as NIU took a 6-4 lead after a WMU run. Grevengoed notched her second kill of the set and gave the Huskies their final lead at 7-6 before the Broncos went on a 5-1 run. Grevengoed added a pair of kills late in the set as Alvin recorded the final point, a block, for the Huskies in the opening set.
 
Grevengoed and Nedic had kills in the opening points of the second set as the Broncos and Huskies traded points early. Charli Atiemo (Milford, Mich./Farmington Hills Mercy) recorded her first kill of the evening before a block by Nazli Güvener (Ankara, Turkey/Elvankent Sinar) tied the set at six all. Leading with an Atiemo kill, the Huskies went on a 3-1 run in the middle of the set to bring the set with two at 14-12. A kill from Grevengoed ended a 6-2 run by the Broncos while Atiemo tallied the final kill of the set for the Huskies.
 
Heading into the third set, Sophie Hurt (Elmhurst, Ill./IC Catholic Prep) recorded the first kill for the Huskies before Jada Cerniglia (Cross Plains, Wis./Middleton) added the fourth service ace of the evening for the Huskies. Güvener had consecutive kills early in the set as Atiemo gave the Huskies the lead at 7-6 on a kill. The Huskies and Broncos traded points and tied several times before Atiemo and Grevengoed were credited with back-to-back kills to make in 15-12. The Broncos responded with a 5-1 run to take the lead at 17-16. Hurt recorded her lone ace of the evening to bring the Huskies within one at 20-19. Nedic recorded a pair of kills to make it 22-21 as Grevengoed had the final kill of the evening for the Huskies.
 
Huskie Highlights

• McCartney led the Huskies with two service aces, her fourth game this season with multiple kills. McCartney had a pair of kills in the Huskies' last game against Buffalo on November 2.
• Atiemo is only three kills away from the 1,000-career mark as she had six kills on 12 attacks and no errors.
• Alvin marked her 13th straight game with a block.

 
The Huskies will conclude the home portion of the 2024 season as they host Bowling Green on November 8 and 9. First serve is set for 6 p.m. on November 8 inside Victor E. Court.