Volleyball Splits Pair To Open Play At Dunn Hospitality Invitational

OVERVIEW – PURDUE NORTHWEST/NORTH ALABAMA

SCORES: Northwood Timberwolves 3, Purdue Northwest Pride 0 (25-16, 25-18, 25-17)/North Alabama Lions 3, Northwood 0 (28-26, 25-18, 25-20)
RECORDS: Northwood (4-1), Purdue Northwest (1-4)/Northwood (4-2), North Alabama Lions (4-2)
LOCATION: Physical Activities Center – Evansville, Ind. (Southern Indiana University)
RECAP: Northwood opened play at the Dunn Hospitality Invitational by defeating Purdue Northwest 3-0 before falling to North Alabama 3-0 Friday (September 8).

INSIDE THE MATCH - PURDUE NORTHWEST

• Northwood scored the first three points and eight of the first 10 points of the match against Purdue Northwest. The Pride eventually got back within three points at 14-11, but the Timberwolves responded immediately and cruised to a 25-16 win. NU hit .325 in the opening set (16-3-40) while Purdue Northwest finished at .125 (11-6-40).
• The Pride got off to a better start in the second, earning a 3-1 lead early. Northwood still trailed 12-11 when the Timberwolves went on what proved to be the key run of the set. NU registered eight of the next nine points to go up 19-13 before finishing off a 25-18 win. Both offenses took a step back in the second – Northwood finished at .171 (13-6-41) compared to Purdue Northwest at .000 (7-7-35).
• The third set was back and forth until the score was level at 14-14. From that point on, it was all Northwood. NU put up 11 of the final 14 points to win 25-17 and close out the victory. The Timberwolves' offense found is rhythm again in the third, hitting .333 (13-2-33). Purdue Northwest ended the set at .121 (11-7-33).

MATCH STATS

• HITTING: Northwood: .272 (42-11-114), Purdue Northwest: .083 (37-29-108) 
• DIGS: Northwood 56 (Allison Getty – 16), Purdue Northwest 55
• BLOCKS: Northwood 2.0 (Four players – 1), Purdue Northwest 5.0
• ACES: Northwood 5 (Mackenzie Kepler – 2), Purdue Northwest 3

TOP NU PERFORMERS

• Getty: 13 kills, one error, 35 attempts, .343 attack percentage, 16 digs, 14.5 points
• Sydney Greulich: Eight kills, .316 attack percentage, 9.5 points
• Kepler: Seven kills, seven digs, .429 attack percentage, 9.0 points
• Hailey Jones: 35 assists, nine digs

INSIDE THE MATCH - NORTH ALABAMA

• Northwood got off to a solid start against North Alabama, scoring six of the first nine points. The Timberwolves were close to finishing off the set, leading 23-21 late. NU had a pair of set points before the Lions came back to win 28-26. Northwood hit .191 in the set (16-7-47) compared to North Alabama at .162 (16-8-49).
• The second saw Northwood lead 12-11 before UNA finished the set strong. The Lions went on to win 25-18, which included a 5-0 run to close out the set. North Alabama hit .326 in the frame (18-3-46) while holding Northwood to a .182 clip (12-4-44).
• The final set proved to be very similar to the second. NU led 12-10 before a big run by North Alabama. UNA scored nine of the next 10 points to lead 19-13 on their way to a 25-20 win to close things out. The hitting numbers proved to be similar to the second as well – NU hit .189 (10-3-37) while North Alabama finished at .318 (20-6-44).

MATCH STATS

• HITTING: Northwood: .188 (38-14-128), North Alabama: .266 (54-17-139) 
• DIGS: Northwood 58 (Getty/Brenna Murphy – 14), North Alabama 71
• BLOCKS: Northwood 5.0 (Greulich – 4), North Alabama 6.0
• ACES: Northwood 3 (Jones – 3), North Alabama 4

TOP NU PERFORMERS

• Getty: 16 kills, 14 digs, 16.0 points
• Greulich: Seven kills, four blocks, 9.5 points
• Kepler: Eight kills, 13 digs, two blocks, 9.0 points
• Hailey Jones: 33 assists, 14 digs

UP NEXT

• Northwood will finish play at Southern Indiana Invitational Saturday (Sept. 9). They will begin play against Cedarville at 10 a.m. before facing Southern Indiana at 3 p.m.