Trailing two sets to one, the Northern Kentucky volleyball team responded with wins in sets four and five to pull out a five-set victory (15-25, 25-21, 23-25, 27-25, 15-8) over Ohio on Friday. The win moves the Norse to 1-1 on the season, while Ohio slides to 0-2 on the year.
STATS LEADERS
• Anna Brinkmann registered a double-double with 15 kills and 15 digs. Brinkmann hit .256 on the afternoon.
• Abby Kanakry racked up 10 terminations behind a .241 hitting percentage.
• Anna Burke led the back row with 21 digs, establishing a new career-high. She also added three aces to her total, two of which came early in the decisive fifth set.
• Katy Yopko distributed 25 assists to pace the offense. She added nine digs.
• Miranda Wucherer handed out 19 assists and scooped nine Bobcat attacks.
• Lillian Leiner also registered double-figure digs with 10.
• Reilly Briggs was just off of double-digit kills with nine.
FIRST SET SUMMARY
• The Norse registered eight kills in the frame, but committed nine hitting errors and settled for a -.025 hitting percentage.
• Meanwhile, the Bobcats registered 13 kills and just three errors for a .263 hitting percentage.
• Wucherer and Kanakry led NKU with three kills each, while Burke had six scoops on the backline.
SECOND SET SUMMARY
• NKU responded in the second set, posting eight kills at a .217 clip and holding OU to 12 kills at a .143 attack percentage.
• Net defense and serving proved pivotal as NKU racked up five blocks and five aces in the set.
• Kanakry had another three terminations.
• Kanakry, Brinkmann, Briggs and Natalie Harding each had two blocks in the set.
THIRD SET SUMMARY
• Back-and-forth was the name of the game in set No. 3. It featured 17 ties and seven lead changes.
• Ultimately, Ohio won the set, 25-23, with three-straight points to close it out.
• NKU had 12 kills and OU terminated 16 attacks.
• The Norse offense was paced by Brinkmann’s three kills.
FOURTH SET SUMMARY
• Set four needed extra points to be decided, but Northern Kentucky was able to even the match with a 27-25 decision.
• Brinkmann was on fire, terminating seven attacks without an error and hitting .538 in the set.
• Briggs added four kills to the scoring and Burke racked up another eight digs.
• With the set all square at 25, Kanakry and Brinkmann put away consecutive kills to close out the set.
FIFTH SET SUMMARY
• Northern Kentucky raced out in the fifth set, establishing a 7-1 lead.
• Burke delivered a pair of aces in the first three points to set the tone.
• Ohio pulled back within three at 10-7 courtesy of a 6-3 run, but the Norse answered with a kill from Joy Banks, consecutive terminations by Brinkmann and the final two from Sequoia Hunt.
• NKU won the set, 15-8, using three kills apiece from Brinkmann and Hunt, plus the two aces from Burke.
• The Norse had nine kills, compared to three for the Bobcats.
MATCH NOTES
• With this double-double, Brinkmann now has 28 in her career.
• This marks the second-straight match Burke has established a new career digs mark after recording 13 versus Ohio State last night.
• NKU terminated 53 attacks at a .171 clip, while OU hit .243 on its 65 kills.
• The Norse had a slim advantage in blocks, 8.0-7.0, but doubled up the Bobcats in aces, 10-5.
NKU Athletics
