Right time to face a rival: NMU volleyball continues success over Tech with 4-set win
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HOUGHTON -- This rivalry match came at the perfect time for the Northern Michigan University volleyball team.
The Wildcats took on their biggest Upper Peninsula foe, Michigan Tech, at the Huskies gym on Tuesday evening and posted a four-set victory.
The victory kept alive NMU's hopes of attaining home court in the first-round quarterfinals of the upcoming tournament in the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference.
There are four home-court spots open in the quarterfinals as the top four teams host the next four based on the standings at the end of the regular season.
It also hurt the Huskies chances as both are now tied for fifth place at 8-7 in league. Northern is 12-14 overall and MTU is 13-13. Davenport occupies fourth place right now, a half-game ahead of the U.P. squads at 8-6.
The Wildcats, Tech and the rest of the GLIAC are finishing the regular season with two final matches this week, NMU and MTU getting a jump-start with their midweek clash. Northern completes the regular season at 7 p.m. EST Friday at Wisconsin-Parkside, which is a half-game behind NMU at 7-7 in league matches.
The Wildcats won for the sixth straight time in their rivalry with the Huskies, this time 25-20, 25-20, 26-28, 25-20. It is Northern's longest winning streak in this rivalry since NMU won 10 straight from 2010-14.
"That was unreal," Northern head coach Mike Lozier said in an NMU Sports Information news release reviewing the match. "We have been searching for that spark required to compete at the highest level, and (Tuesday night) they found it in the biggest moment.
"We spent the last few days talking about how important this rivalry is to the NMU community, and so to get the win on their floor is special."
The Wildcats controlled this match with an efficient offense, hitting with its second-highest attack percentage of the season at .295. KC Fortune led the way with 21 kills, adding in a team-high three service aces, while Kaylie McIntosh had 17 kills and Anna O'Keefe 13.
Lauren Cardwell made sure the defense was also solid, making a match-high 16 digs as teammate Taylor Smaka had 10 and Allie Barlow nine. Barlow had 47 assists as she and Laynie Russell each made three blocks.
"Shoutout to KC and Kaylie on the outside, getting a heavy dose of sets, and finding ways to get the ball to the floor," Lozier said. "This win was special, and we are going to enjoy it."
NMU took control from the outset, never trailing by more than one point in either of the first two sets. Even in the third set they lost, the Wildcats were behind by multiple points on just one occasion.
In the opening set, the combatants traded 4-0 runs to open play, Northern's including a Fortune kill. Then there were numerous ties before NMU scored three points in a row to take a 22-18 advantage. That spurt included kills by McIntosh and O'Keefe.
After Tech scored back-to-back points to edge to within 22-20, the Wildcats reeled off one more 3-0 run to end the set, powered by kills from McIntosh, and on set point, Fortune.
Set 2 was similar, with seven ties early, the last at 14-14. Then Northern went on a 6-2 run to open a 20-16 lead, which included two aces and a kill by Fortune along with an ace by O'Keefe.
The teams traded back-to-back points several times, but NMU's final one actually became three points in a row to end the set, that spurt including a kill by O'Keefe and on the final two points, kills by Fortune.
Tech rallied with the match on the line, jumping out to an 11-5 lead in the third set. The Wildcats answered with a 4-0 run, including a pair of kills from McIntosh, to tighten the set.
But Northern wouldn't actually catch their hosts until another 4-0 run gave NMU a 20-19 lead. That run included Barlow, Russell and McIntosh kills.
After Tech retied it 20-20, NMU got to the first set point, 24-22, on a Huskies service error.
MTU saved the two subsequent set points, and after several exchanges of points, Tech ended the set with three straight.
Now nursing a 2-1 lead in the match, Northern got back to work in the fourth set, jumping out to a 5-3 lead with four consecutive points powered by kills from Russell and Fortune and an ace by Olivia Ziemer.
NMU reasserted itself with another four points in a row, including a pair of Fortune kills, to go ahead 12-9.
With a lot of trading of points, Northern kept a small lead until, at 23-20, the Wildcats scored back-to-back points on a McIntosh kill and match-ending ace by Sydney Bartels.
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From left, Northern Michigan University's KC Fortune, Larsen Bonnstetter and Anna O'Keefe ready for a serve from Minnesota-Duluth during a match played at the UP North Volleyball Tournament at Vandament Arena in Marquette on Aug. 28. (Photo courtesy Cara Kamps)
Northern Michigan University's Lauren Bonnstetter, right, spikes the ball over the heads of a pair of Winona State players to score a point in their match during the UP North Tournament held at Vandament Arena in Marquette on Aug. 27. (Photo courtesy Cara Kamps)