Northwestern feels it can build on Saturday’s win against Michigan State.
After Wednesday’s 3-0 loss to Wisconsin, the Wildcats focused on better team play to set themselves up for more scoring chances.
Coach Keylor Chan said the season’s theme is growth, and NU (8-15, 2-10 Big Ten) showed substantial improvement from its play earlier in the season Saturday.
The Cats benefited from increased involvement from every player on the court and swept the Spartans (12-11, 4-8) in a three-set match after they had beaten the Cats in a tough 3-2 match only three weeks ago.
NU’s win was a sign of the team’s progress in the last few weeks.
“I think the team has matured a lot,” sophomore Sabel Moffett said. “Everyone has been giving a lot in practice. We’ve been working on team play.”
The Cats came together to win only its second Big Ten match of the season. The win was a much-needed boost to the team’s psyche following four consecutive conference losses.
“It is a process, and tonight was a great match for confidence,” Chan said.
With no lead changes or ties in the first set, NU’s domination of Michigan State should give the team reason for confidence.
The Cats jumped out with a 4-0 lead to start the set off of three attack errors by the Spartans. Michigan State tried to make an early comeback and get the score within three but were unsuccessful. The Cats didn’t look back and extended the lead to 16-9 off another Spartan error. Led by Moffett’s five kills, NU held a lead of at least six points through the rest of the set and won 25-18.
But the second set proved to be more difficult. The Cats built a 15-11 lead, but it did not last long. Michigan State answered with four straight points to tie the set. The rest of the set saw both teams swapping points until the score reached 24.
But NU took the next two points and the set, led by four more kills by Moffett. It was the kind of performance to close out a set that the team was struggling to get all season.
“You can control playing good volleyball,” Chan said. “If you look at our schedule, we’re always not far away from winning.”
The Spartans tried to build momentum early on in the third set with a 3-0 lead, but the Cats quickly followed with an 8-1 run to take control of the game after a kill by sophomore Elyse Glab. But Michigan State did not go away and climbed back into the game to tie the set at 22.
After NU called a timeout with a 24-23 lead to get some time to relax and regroup, the Cats sealed the game with a kill by sophomore Naomi Johnson.
“Coming off a losing streak, to see a win makes you feel so much better,” Moffett said. “Any win you can build on.”
With only two conference wins this season, NU hopes to continue the success.
“We are definitely going to capitalize on the momentum,” Chan said. “Our goal is to continue to make that climb and focus on getting better.”
