North Michigan News

The Northern Michigan Wildcats women's volleyball team secured a four-set victory over the Roosevelt Lakers on Friday night in Chicago. After dropping the first set 21-25, the Wildcats responded by winning the next three sets 25-16, 25-22, and 25-16.

Northern Michigan finished with a .268 attack percentage, marking their fourth-highest of the season. The team also achieved a season-high 10 service aces, with Kaysie Bakke and Sydney Bartels each contributing three. McKenzie Gruner led the offense with 15 kills, while Bakke and Madison York each recorded 10 kills. Setter Allie Barlow had 38 assists.

Defensively, Northern Michigan posted seven team blocks and limited Roosevelt to a .152 hitting percentage for the match. The Wildcats held Roosevelt to just .050 in the final set. Gruner contributed four blocks, and Bakke added three.

Head coach Mike Lozier said, "Really proud of our resilience tonight. After a tough first set, we dug deep in sets two, three, and four. Kenzie (Gruner) and Emilia (Gulock) came up huge, especially in that final set. We continue to find ways to win as a team, now on to Parkside."

With this win, Northern Michigan's overall record improved to 11-12 and their conference record moved to 8-3 in GLIAC play. They are now tied for second place with Wayne State Warriors and Grand Valley State Lakers behind Ferris State Bulldogs.

The match began with both teams playing closely until Roosevelt pulled ahead late in the first set. In the second set, Northern Michigan went on several scoring runs to take control. The third set was also competitive before another strong finish by the Wildcats secured them a lead in sets. In the fourth set, Gruner started strong with consecutive kills as NMU maintained momentum until match point was sealed by an ace from Liesl Haugen.

Next, Northern Michigan will travel to Kenosha, Wisconsin for a match against Parkside Rangers on November 1 at 4 p.m. ET.