Northwestern College stayed unbeaten this season with a 3-0 sweep over Morningside in a GPAC match-up played tonight in Sioux City, Iowa. The Raiders improve to 2-0 in conference action, 4-0 overall; Morningside slips to 2-4 in league play, 3-6 overall.
Anna Wedel put away 20 kills and hit .500 to lead the Raiders for the second consecutive match. The senior did not commit a hitting error and totaled 15 digs for her second double-double of the season. Makenzie Fink added 10 kills, hitting over .300, on the rightside, and A.J. Kacmarynski accounted for nine kills in 30 swings, hitting at a .267 clip.
Set One: 25-11 win
Northwestern used early 4-0 and 5-0 runs to establish a 12-5 lead and force Morningside into using both timeouts. Leading 21-15, Northwestern scored the final four points off a hitting error by the Mustangs and kills by Fink, Wedel and Macay Van’t Hul. The Raiders hit .452 compared to .071 by Morningside.
Set Two: 25-22 win
Two kills from Van’t Hul and an ace serve by Jadeyn Schutt put Northwestern in front 5-2 early in set two. Head Coach Kyle Van Den Bosch’s squad stretched their lead to 17-11 following successful attacks from Wedel and Lacey Reitz. Leading 23-15, Morningside began its best run of the match, scoring five straight points, to make the set close in the end. The teams traded the final four points with Northwestern winning the set on a kill by Emily Van Ginkel.
Set Three: 25-15
Northwestern continued to hold all the momentum in set three, jumping out to a 12-5 advantage following a 5-0 run after kills by Kacmarynski and Fink. The Raiders sustained at least a five point lead for the duration of the set, closing out the match with the final four points on kills from Wedel, Van’t Hul and Fink.
Lacey Reitz orchestrated a Raider offense that hit .360 for the match, lofting up 47 assists to go with 12 digs. Van’t Hul, making her first collegiate start, put away eight kills and assisted on four blocks. Emily Strasser led the backrow play with 17 digs.
Morningside hit .144 , led by Krista Zenk with 14 kills.
