Volleyball Wins Pair At Warrior Invitational - NU now 5-1 On The Season

OVERVIEW – WEST VIRGINIA WESLEYAN

SCORE: Northwood 3, West Virginia Wesleyan 0 (25-16, 25-16, 26-24)

RECORDS: Northwood (4-1), West Virginia Wesleyan (1-4)

LOCATION: Matthaei Center – Detroit, Michigan (Wayne State University – Warrior Invitational)

RECAP: Northwood opened play at the Warrior Invitational with a 3-0 sweep over West Virginia Wesleyan.

INSIDE THE MATCH

• Northwood hit .441 (18-3-34) in the opening set and used an early 10-2 run to take control en route to a 1-0 lead.
• After the offense carried the load in the first set, it was the Timberwolves' defense that was the difference in the second. NU held the Bobcats to a -.125 attack percentage (6-10-32) thanks in large part to five Timberwolves blocks.
• The final set saw NU led 20-14 but West Virginia Wesleyan fought back to within one at 21-20. The Bobcats got within one point three more times but were never able to tie the match. Northwood then scored the final two points to close out the contest.

MATCH STATS

• HITTING: Northwood .227 (44-19-110), West Virginia Wesleyan -.010 (22-23-103)
• DIGS: Northwood 48 (Sommer VandenBerge – 16), West Virginia Wesleyan 39
• BLOCKS: Northwood 7 (Sydney Greulich – 4), West Virginia Wesleyan 6
• ACES: Northwood 5 (Allison Getty – 2), West Virginia Wesleyan 1

TOP NU PERFORMERS

• Brenna Murphy (Fort Gratiot, Mich./Port Huron Northern): 12 kills, 13.0 points
• Allison Getty (Wayland, Mich.): 11 kills, 10 digs, 2 aces, 13.0 points
• Sydney Greulich (Kitchener, Ontario/St. Mary's): Six kills, three aces, .600 attack percentage (6-0-10)
• Hailey Jones (Ada, Mich./Forest Hills Northern): 31 assists, eight digs

NORTHWOOD NOTES

• Murphy's 12 kills were a career-high for the sophomore. She nine in two different matches last season (9/9/15 – vs. Northern Michigan, 10/3/15 – at Ashland).

OVERVIEW – SAINT JOSEPH'S

SCORE: Northwood 3, Saint Joseph's 0 (25-15, 25-15, 25-19)

RECORDS: Northwood (5-1), Saint Joseph's (1-5)

LOCATION: Matthaei Center – Detroit, Michigan (Wayne State University – Warrior Invitational)

RECAP: Northwood moved to 5-1 with its second sweep of the day – a 3-0 victory over regional opponent Saint Joseph's

INSIDE THE MATCH

• Northwood was strong on both sides of the net in the opening set, hitting .343 (16-4-35) while holding Saint Joseph's to a .054 (7-5-37) mark while taking a 1-0 lead.
• The second set was tight until a big final push from the Timberwolves. NU led 16-15 before scoring the final nine points. It was Northwood's strong play over those final points that gave them a 2-0 lead. Northwood had six kills and two aces in the final nine points.
• The Timberwolves got off to a fast start and had a strong finish in the final set. Northwood led 5-1 and 7-3, but Saint Joseph's fought back to cut the NU lead down to 18-17. The Timberwolves then scored seven of the final nine points to close out their fourth straight win.

MATCH STATS

• HITTING: Northwood .361 (42-7-97), Saint Joseph's .103 (28-17-107)
• DIGS: Northwood 59 (Carson Rutherford/Brenna Murphy – 11), Saint Joseph's 42
• BLOCKS: Northwood 7 (Colleen Mayer – 5), Saint Joseph's 1
• ACES: Northwood 3 (Allison Getty – 2), Saint Joseph's 4

TOP NU PERFORMERS

• Allison Getty: 15 kills, .483 attack percentage (15-1-29), 10 digs
• Colleen Mayer (Troy, Mich./Avondale): Seven kills, five blocks, .389 attack percentage (7-0-18)
• Sydney Greulich (Kitchener, Ontario/St. Mary's): Eight kills, .571 attack percentage (8-0-14)
• Hailey Jones (Ada, Mich./Forest Hills Northern): 37 assists, 10 digs, two blocks

NORTHWOOD NOTES

• Northwood's 5-1 record is their best after six matches since 2007 when the Timberwolves began 6-0 en route to a 12-0 start.

UP NEXT

• Northwood will finish play at the Warrior Invitational with a pair of matches Saturday (September 10). The Timberwolves will play Seton Hill at 11:15 a.m. before taking on host Wayne State at 6 p.m. The NU/WSU match features a pair of Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) teams but it is a non-league match.