Despite Northwestern’s four-set loss to No.10 Purdue Friday, head coach Tim Nollan remained optimistic after the match.
“I thought we did a really nice job of competing in big moments,” Nollan said. “I thought we showed some growth in that area. I thought we created service pressure again tonight, which we hadn’t been able to create as much in our last match.”
Nollan also complimented his middle blockers — junior Kennedy Hill and graduate student Sophia Summers, who recorded nine and eight kills, respectively — and the Wildcats (3-9, 1-3 Big Ten) defense, which held the Boilermakers (11-3, 2-1 Big Ten) at bay in set one, before falling in subsequent sets.
But while NU took a set from a ranked team and played it closely in sets two and four, the ’Cats have had a slow start to the season, adjusting to a 6-2 rotation and an influx of new players.
Most Division 1 teams run a 5-1, where one setter is on the court at once, recording most of the team’s assists. Graduate student setter Alexa Rousseau played that role for her first four seasons at NU.
“Alexa is statistically our best setter,” Nollan said. “We had the best connection off of her, but she’s also one of our better point scorers. So ([we’re)] trying to find ways to maximize her.”
In a 6-2, Rousseau stays on the court all the way around. When she’s rotated in the back row, she acts as setter. While she’s in the front, she hits with either junior setter Lauren Carter or redshirt sophomore Sienna Noordermeer dishing out sets to the ’Cats’ hitters. This allows Rousseau, who ranks second on the team in kills, to maximize her offensive contribution.
This system proved beneficial against Purdue, with Rousseau recording her seventh double-double of the season with 11 kills and 17 assists. Carter acted as the second setter for most of the match, tallying another 17 assists, while Noordermeer, seeing the court for the first time since NU’s away match with Northern Illinois, picked up five.
“Lauren’s been setting great, and we’ve really been working on our connection, so I think that’s helped a lot,” Rousseau said. “But also just kind of taking the back seat too, when I know that my teammates want to have a voice and they can step into leadership roles because it doesn’t always have to be me.”
That connection showed throughout the match, as Carter dished out all but one of Rousseau’s kills, including three in NU’s triumphant first set.
Despite the challenge of playing a ranked opponent, seven ’Cats tallied kills against the Boilermakers. Junior outside hitter Buse Hazan tied Rousseau to lead the team with 11 kills, while, on the defensive side, the ’Cats out-blocked Purdue 11-7. The Boilermakers committed 14 service errors, adding fuel to NU’s rallies on more than one occasion.
But the ’Cats ran out of steam before they could push the match to five sets, leaving room for improvement in terms of rotation and offense, according to Rousseau.
“I think personally, I can just keep working on my range, trying to take better shots, see what’s open, keep communicating with my teammates,” Rousseau said. “But I think we have a lot of things— we’re just right there. Just have to turn a few more things, execute a little bit better when we get those easy opportunities, and stay patient.”
Email: palomaleone-getten2026@u.northwestern.edu
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