DeKALB, Ill. — After taking the first set of the night, the Northern Illinois University Huskies volleyball team (10-7, 3-5 MAC) fell in four sets to the Rockets of the University of Toledo (15-5, 6-2 MAC). The Huskies posted a score of 25-21 in the opening set before dropping the following sets 13-25, 18-25, 15-25.
 
Sophomore outside hitter Emma McCartney (Cleveland, Ohio/Chardon) led the Huskies with 16 kills in the contest. Ava Grevengoed (Shorewood, Ill./Joliet West), Naomi Dowd (Aurora, Ill./Waubonsie Valley), and Autumn Flynn (Luxemburg, Wis./Luxemburg-Casco) combined for 15 kills.
 
"Toledo is known for their serving and is a tough serving team. We've seen that passing is a part of our game and when we're there, we are unstoppable," noted Sondra D'Amore, NIU Head Coach. "I'm always confident that our bench can step up and give a different spark. We need to clean up the first contact on the passing side and find a more consistent rhythm and that will help us."
 
How It Happened
 
The first set featured one tie and one lead change as the Huskies took the lead on McCartney's first kill at 2-1 and never relinquished the lead. McCartney put the Huskies up by five early before Toledo climbed back to within two at 7-5. Amidst an 8-6 run through the middle of the set, NIU maintained a five-point advantage with McCartney's third kill during the stretch to force a Toledo timeout at 17-12. The Rockets fought back to get within two at 21-19 as Toledo recorded 16 aces in the contest. Starting with a Flynn kill, NIU ended the first set on a 4-2 run.
 
Rylea Alvin (Randolph, Wis./Randolph) recorded the Huskies first kill of the second set as Toledo jumped out to a 5-1 lead. The Rockets, who would hit .524 in the second set, went on an 8-4 run with McCartney recorded a single kill as NIU called timeout at 13-5. The Huskies continued to fight back, going on a 4-2 run late in the set. Dowd and McCartney recorded the final two points of the set as the Rockets evened the contest, 1-1.
 
The third set featured three tie scores before Toledo took a 7-6 lead and never looked back. Following an NIU timeout early, the Rockets went on an 8-6 run with McCartney accounting for three Huskie kills. Toledo matched their 8-6 run a second time in the set with Alvin recording the final kill for NIU as Toledo took a two-set lead.
 
Delaney Steers (Brownsburg, Ind./Brownsburg) recorded the final Huskie ace of the evening as NIU took the first two points of the fourth and final set. McCartney responded with a kill, ending a 5-0 run by the Rockets. Grevengoed recorded two kills during a 5-2 run by NIU as the Huskies tied the game at nine. The Huskies and Rockets traded the next four points before Toledo scored three in a row for a 13-11 lead. The Rockets ended the set on a 12-3 run as they handed the Huskies their first loss at home this season.
 
The Huskies return to action on October 18 as they conclude the series with Toledo. First serve is set for 4 p.m. on ESPN+ with Matt Rodewald and Sam Grams, NIU '12, on the call.
 
To purchase tickets, please click here or call the NIU Athletics Tickets Office at 815-753-PACK (7225).
 
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