Northwestern dropped matches against No. 11 Oregon and Washington this weekend.
The Wildcats (5-19, 3-13 Big Ten) started their West Coast road trip taking a set from the ranked Ducks (19-16, 11-5 Big Ten) but ultimately losing in Eugene, Oregon.
In the first set, Oregon took the reins at 3-2 and never looked back, boosted by its .314 hitting percentage and 16 kills. NU, on the other hand, tallied seven kills and seven errors on 36 attempts, bringing them to a .000 hitting percentage. The Ducks’ defense also came alive with four blocks, propelling Oregon to a 25-15 first-set win.
The second set was a different story. The ’Cats held their own from the start, led by junior outside hitter Buse Hazan, who contributed a team-leading 12 kills Friday. The Ducks’ offense stayed hot, but NU matched their efforts and forced 14 tie scores and five lead changes. With the set tied at 22, the ’Cats capitalized on Oregon’s errors and sealed the win on a kill by Hazan, 25-22.
NU started the third set on a 3-0 run, which the Ducks immediately reciprocated. The teams traded points, with the ’Cats’ middle blockers, junior Kennedy Hill and graduate student Sophia Summers, leading the way with three kills apiece in the third frame. Junior outside hitter Kathryn Randorf added four kills. 13 tie scores, five lead changes and two extra points later, Oregon took the third set, 27-25.
NU battled from behind for the entirety of the fourth set. Hill and Randorf kept the ’Cats’ offense alive while four service errors and eight attack errors from the Ducks gave NU some reprieve. Still, Oregon maintained its lead, taking the set 25-20, and the match 3-1.
More than 280 miles north in Seattle, NU was defeated in straight sets by the Huskies (19-7, 9-7 Big Ten) Sunday.
Washington started the first set on an immediate 3-0 run on two kills and an ace. The ’Cats responded with a 4-0 tear, led by Hill, who supplied back-to-back kills. The teams played close, with the Huskies building up a five-point edge, leading to a 13-18 timeout call by coach Tim Nollan. Washington kept rolling, hitting .296 to NU’s .061, to take the set 25-15.
The second set started close, but the ’Cats soon went on a run to take a 7-3 lead, led by back-to-back kills from junior outside hitter Rylen Reid. The Huskies battled back, soon reciprocated by the ’Cats. The score stayed tight into the red zone – points after 20 – but Washington’s 3-0 run sealed the set two win for the Huskies, 25-23.
Washington started the third set on a roll, quickly drawing a 13-6 lead, guided by a .313 hitting percentage throughout the third frame. Conversely, NU hit in the negatives with five kills and eight errors. The Huskies were undeterred by a timeout call from the ’Cats and piled onto their lead, running up the score to 18-6 before NU answered. Kills from Reid and Summers tried to keep the ’Cats in the game, but Washington ultimately triumphed 25-14 to take the match 3-0.
Sunday also marked a homecoming for Summers, who spent four years at Washington and participated in three NCAA tournament runs.
The ’Cats will be back in action Thursday against USC at Welsh-Ryan Arena.
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