Northwestern defeated Northern Illinois in straight sets Friday for the second time in two days.
The Wildcats (2-6, 0-0 Big Ten) defeated the Huskies (2-8, 0-0 MAC) 3-0 in DeKalb, in NU’s final nonconference matchup of the season.
Graduate student setter Alexa Rousseau led the ’Cats’ effort, recording a double-double with 21 assists and 12 kills. Junior transfer outside hitter Buse Hazan tallied another 12 kills, while sophomore transfer outside hitter Lily Wagner collected a team-leading 11 digs.
The match began with a series of missteps, with NU committing two service errors to NIU’s seven attack errors. With the first set score at 10-9, junior outside hitter Kathryn Randorf scored on a soft tip from the right side, padding her .417 hitting percentage and the ’Cats lead. A well-rounded offensive finish from Hazan, Randorf and Rousseau carried NU to a 25-16 win.
The ’Cats started the second set with a 4-0 run, bolstered by three attack errors by the Huskies and a kill by junior middle blocker Kennedy Hill. But NIU soon rallied, keeping the score close through the heart of the set despite four lead changes and seven tie scores. Backed into a corner on a Huskies match point, Rousseau tied things up and Wagner tallied her first two kills of the match to take the set 26-24.
NU and NIU went back to battle in the third set, keeping things tight early on. Behind graduate middle blocker Sophia Summers, who tallied six kills on 10 attempts throughout the match, the ’Cats pulled ahead. Despite a last-minute resurgence attempt from the Huskies, NU’s balanced offense carried them to their second consecutive sweep of NIU, 25-21.
The ’Cats will be back in action to open the Big Ten season Thursday at Maryland.
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