Anna Wedel put down a season-high 20 kills in leading Northwestern to a 3-1 win over Dakota Wesleyan in the first match played by the Raiders in 20 days. Individual scores were 20-25, 25-19, 25-14 and 25-15.
Northwestern improves to 1-0 in the GPAC, 3-0 overall; Dakota Wesleyan moves to 3-3 in the GPAC, 6-3 overall.
Playing for the first time since a 3-0 home win against Bellevue on Sept. 10, Northwestern hit .279 for the match and over .300 for the final three sets. Wedel led the way for Head Coach Kyle Van Den Bosch’s squad, putting down 20 kills and hitting nearly .300. Macay Van’t Hul and Taylor Meyer both hit for a career-best 10 kills with Van’t Hul hitting .450 to go five blocks.
First Set: 25-20 loss
The Raiders scored the first two points only to have the host Tigers follow with a 9-2 surge to take the lead for good in the first set. Van Den Bosch’s squad fought back to within two following a block by Emily Van Ginkel and Lacey Reitz but another 7-1 DWU run put the first set in the hosts favor, 25-20.
Set Two: 25-19 win
Northwestern came back to tie the match at 1-1 with a 25-19 win in set two. The Raiders led from start to finish, pulling away late with a 7-3 run, fueled by four kills and an ace serve from Wedel.
Set Three: 25-14
The Raiders cruised to a 25-14 win in set three, limiting Dakota Wesleyan to a negative hitting efficiency and forcing the Tigers into nine hitting errors. The blocking by Wedel, Van Ginkel and Van’t Hul played a big role in the Raiders win and Taylor Meyer scored two of the final three points to put Van Den Bosch’s squad up 2-1.
Set Four: 25-15
Northwestern hit a match-best .475, making just one error in 40 attacks, in its 25-15 win in the final set. The Raiders scored eight of the first 11 points and led 18-8 following three straight points on kills from Wedel (2) and Meyer (1). The teams alternated points the rest of the way as Northwestern finished off DWU on another successful attack from Wedel.
Lacey Reitz totaled 52 assists and 16 digs as the Raiders setter. Emily Strasser (19 digs) and Olivia Granstra (16 digs) anchored the backrow.
Ady Dwight led DWU with 12 kills and two blocks.
