Volleyball Splits Matches On Final Day At Northern Michigan Open

OVERVIEW – MINNESOTA-CROOKSTON/MINNESOTA DULUTH

SCORES: Northwood Timberwolves 3, Minnesota-Crookston Golden Eagles 1 (25-14, 21-25, 25-21, 25-21)/Minnesota Duluth Bulldogs 3, Northwood 0 (25-19, 25-12, 25-22)
RECORDS: Northwood (3-4), Minnesota-Crookston (2-5)/Northwood (2-4), Minnesota Duluth Bulldogs (6-2)
LOCATION: Marquette, Mich. – Wildcat Invitational (Northern Michigan University
RECAP: Northwood went on 1-1 the final day of the Wildcat open, defeating Minnesota Crookston 3-1 before falling to Minnesota Duluth Saturday (September 1).

INSIDE THE MATCH - MINNESOTA-CROOKSTON

• Northwood opened up an early 8-4 lead. The Golden Eagles cut the advantage down to 10-8 when the Timberwolves responded with 11 of the next 12 points on their way to a 25-14 win. NU hit .162 in the set (10-4-37) while holding Crookston to a -.030 (6-7-33) mark.
• The Timberwolves got off to a good start in the second set, scoring the first four points. NU still had a four point lead at 18-14 when the Golden Eagles got on a roll. UMC scored seven straight points before eventually taking the set 25-21. Crookston's offense was much better in the second set, finishing with a .259 attack percentage (11-4-27). Northwood finished the set with a .188 mark (12-6-32).
• NU came right back from the loss in set two with a fast start in the third, going up 12-5. Minnesota-Crookston fought back, eventually tying the score 21-21. But Northwood finished the set strong, scoring the final four points to win 25-21. NU hit .150 in the set (14-8-40), compared to the Golden Eagles at .000 (8-8-37).
• NU got off to another good start in the fourth, eventually going up 15-7. Once again, the Golden Eagles fought back to make it close, getting within two at 17-15. That is as close as UMC would get, however, as the Timberwolves finished off the win by taking the fourth 25-21. Northwood had their best offensive set in the fourth, hitting .324 overall (13-2-34). Minnesota-Crookston ended the fourth at .200 (13-6-35).

MATCH STATS

• HITTING: Northwood: .203 (49-20-143), Minnesota-Crookston: .098 (38-25-132) 
• DIGS: Northwood 64 (Brenna Murphy – 23), Minnesota-Crookston 66
• BLOCKS: Northwood 5 (Mary Gallagher – 3), Minnesota-Crookston 6
• ACES: Northwood 7 (Mackenzie Kepler – 3), Minnesota-Crookston 6

TOP NU PERFORMERS

• Venera Kadriu: 14 kills, 11 digs
• Mackenzie Kepler: Eight kills, six digs
• Macy Lintz: 40 assists, eight digs, two blocks, three kills

INSIDE THE MATCH - MINNESOTA DULUTH

• The Timberwolves led the opening set against Minnesota Duluth 16-14 when the Bulldogs responded. UMD scored six straight points on their way to a 25-19 win.  Duluth finished with six more kills than Northwood in the set (13-7).
• A big run by the Bulldogs in the second set gave UMD a 2-0 lead. The set was tied 9-9 when Duluth put up 11 straight points to go up 20-9. The Bulldogs eventually took the set 25-12, thanks in large part to holding NU to a -.143 attack percentage (4-8-28).
• Northwood scored the first four points of the third set and eventually led 6-2. But Duluth hung around and eventually took their first lead of the set at 17-16. The score was tied 21-21 when UMD earned four of the final five points to win the set 25-22. NU had a solid hitting set, finishing at .206 overall (11-4-34). Minnesota Duluth was even better, finishing at .231 (18-9-39).

MATCH STATS

• HITTING: Northwood: .096 (22-16-87), Minnesota Duluth : .242 (43-21-91) 
• DIGS: Northwood 20 (Grace Rekeweg – 6), Minnesota Duluth 42
• BLOCKS: Northwood 7.0 (Carson Rutherford – 6), Minnesota Duluth 6.0
• ACES: Northwood 4 (Kepler – 2), Minnesota Duluth 6

TOP NU PERFORMERS

• Colleen Mayer/Gallagher: six kills

UP NEXT

• Northwood will host their home opener Friday (September 7) against Purdue Northwest. First serve is set for 7 p.m.