Although Northwestern sported jaunty pink bows in its matches against Nebraska and Indiana this weekend, the team’s mood as it returns to Evanston might be less sprightly after being defeated by both teams in straight sets.
The Wildcats (13-9, 3-7 Big Ten) took on the undefeated No. 1 Cornhuskers (20-0, 10-0 Big Ten) in Lincoln on Friday night.
Nebraska set the pace as middle blocker Rebekah Allick delivered a sharp kill to start the game. NU held its own with kills by junior middle blocker Campbell Paris and graduate student outside hitter Ayah Elnady. However, the Cornhuskers pulled away, led by Allick and opposite hitter Virginia Adriano, bringing the score to 20-10.
Freshman outside hitter Bella Bullington helped the ’Cats claw their way back from the 10-point deficit with three kills, but two scrappy setter dumps by Bergen Reilly gave Nebraska set point at 24-17. Allick and Adriano defended against graduate student outside hitter Buse Hazan’s attack to win the Cornhuskers the set 25-17.
The second set could be encapsulated in the tense, messy rally that occurred with Nebraska leading 6-5, which Hazan ended with a kill. However, the Cornhuskers began to climb, pushing the score to 16-9 before Hazan again shut them down with back-to-back kills.
Junior libero Drew Wright then delivered an ace and a service error, allowing Nebraska to take off again, led by middle blocker Andi Jackson. Jackson executed a slide kill to get the Huskers to set point, and a block with Reilly won it 25-13.
Middle blocker Manaia Ogbechie led the third set for the Cornhuskers as she clashed with Bullington at the net, and the points remained competitive until a kill to a hole in the defense by freshman Teraya Sigler at 13-10 kickstarted a four-point run.
Despite a strong kill from freshman middle blocker Kayla Kauffman to end the run, the match began slipping away from the ’Cats as Sigler, Allick and outside hitter Harper Murray each delivered precise, powerful kills to drive the score to a 24-17 set point. Adriano’s serve for Nebraska rolled luckily and lazily over the tape to win her team the set 25-17, and the match 3-0, with an ace.
The ’Cats faced off with Indiana on Sunday, and the Hoosiers (16-4, 7-3 Big Ten) quickly established an eight-point lead at the beginning of set one. Bullington put a stop to the bleeding with three ferocious kills, punctuated by a Wright service error to bring the score from 11-3 to 12-6.
Bullington continued to dominate the first set, notching six kills and a block to inch the score tighter. Unfortunately, it wasn’t enough to stop the aggressive Indiana serving and offense, and the Hoosiers sealed the first set 25-17 with an ace by outside hitter Candela Alonso-Corcelles.
NU seemed more competitive in the second set, sticking within two or three points of its opponents, with key kills by Elnady and blocks by Paris evening the scores at times. The ’Cats fought valiantly through the set to take the lead, but were unsuccessful against blocks and kills by Indiana’s opposite hitter Avry Tatum and outside hitter Jaidyn Jager.
A lift call on redshirt junior setter Sienna Noordermeer and an ace by Indiana defensive specialist Avery Freeman brought the match to set point. Bullington fired one down the line to defend it, prompting an Indiana timeout with Indiana ahead 24-21. However, the Hoosiers came back swinging with a slide kill by freshman Victoria Gray to take the set 25-21.
The third set began with NU inching ahead to a 5-2 advantage, until a kill by Alonso-Corcelles changed the tide for the Hoosiers. The tight, two-point battle resumed, with aces from Carter, Hazan and junior libero Gigi Navarrete fueling the fight.
Nearing the end of the set, with the score 23-22 Indiana, a kill and block by Bullington, assisted by junior middle blocker Gabrielle Gerry, brought the ’Cats to set point. However, a timeout by Indiana stalled the momentum and the Hoosiers came back with a deep, back-row kill and an ace, bringing them their own match point at 25-24. After an NU timeout, Jager won Indiana the set 26-24 with a decisive kill, defeating the ’Cats 3-0.
NU returns home to Welsh-Ryan Arena this weekend, hoping to redeem itself with matches against Iowa (12-10, 3-7 Big Ten) Friday at 7 p.m., and Maryland (8-12, 1-9 Big Ten) on Sunday at 2 p.m. Both games will be broadcast on the Big Ten Network.
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