North Michigan News

The Northern Michigan University volleyball team is preparing for two important conference matches this weekend. The Wildcats, who recently returned from the Midwest Crossover Tournament in Indiana with a 2-1 record, will face Grand Valley State and Wayne State on the road.

Northern Michigan, currently holding a 13-5 overall record and a 7-1 mark in the GLIAC, will play against Grand Valley State on Friday at 6:00 p.m. The Lakers have a strong season record of 16-1 and are tied with Northern at 7-1 in conference play. On Saturday, NMU will take on Wayne State, which has an 8-10 overall record and is 5-3 in conference matches.

Grand Valley State had an undefeated run last weekend at the Midwest Crossover, while Wayne State ended with one win and two losses.

Mike Lozier, NMU's coach, emphasized preparation: "We're going to tighten up our passing and tighten up serving, and work on adding some wrinkles to our offense that maybe our opponents aren't expecting. But we know that once we walk in the gym, we can compete with anybody."

Key player Allie Barlow was recognized as GLIAC Setter of the Week after her outstanding performance at the tournament. She recorded a total of 131 assists over three matches. Barlow leads conference setters this season with 738 assists.

Jacqueline Smith achieved a milestone by breaking NMU's all-time kills record earlier this month and reached 1,000 career digs this season. Meghan Meyer is close to hitting her own milestone with career kills just shy of 1,000.

Grand Valley State is led by senior Jodyn Gates and excels in aces-per-set and blocks-per-set within the league. Nationally, they rank second in blocks per set and third in opponent hitting percentage.

Wayne State relies heavily on Molly Miller and Kayla Giroux for offensive power. Giroux's hitting percentage leads the league and ranks ninth nationally.

The upcoming matches promise competitive action as both NMU opponents bring formidable skills to the court.