Northwestern clinched its fourth match in a row Sunday afternoon against Iowa, sweeping the game in three straight sets after a Friday night upset against No. 12 Purdue.

The victory over Purdue broke a seven-match losing streak against the Boilermakers in the Wildcats’ third defeat of a ranked opponent this season. Senior outside hitter Temi Thomas-Ailara had 25 kills in the five-set win, of 64 total kills for NU. On the defense, fifth-year libero Megan Miller tied her career high of 30 digs. 

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Ziye Wang/The Daily Northwestern

The Wildcats wore pink to recognize and serve those with breast cancer during their Dig Pink match.

Freshman setter Sienna Noordermeer, who competed in her sixth match while junior setter Alexa Rousseau is sidelined, also reached a career high with 57 assists. 

Sunday’s win brings the Cats to their most wins in a season since at least 2014 at 17. 

NU’s defeat of Iowa also marked the Cats’ first four-match win streak in conference play since 2011 and the team’s third sweep in Big Ten play this season. Thomas-Ailara led NU in hits with 19, a number that moved her to 10th in program history with 1,406 career kills.

Noordermeer finished the match with 41 assists, scoring a dump of her own in the second set.

The Cats will next compete against Ohio State on Friday. 

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