The volleyball team bounced back from a loss to the Kent State University Golden Flashes (25-14, 25-22, 18-25, 21-25, 15-9) Friday by defeating the Ohio University Bobcats (25-23, 25-27, 17-25, 32-30, 15-7) Saturday for its first five set win of the season.

NIU was previously 0-6 in matches decided in five sets during the 2018 campaign, including back-to-back losses to the University at Buffalo Bulls Oct. 13 and Kent State.

The Huskies (8-17, 6-4 Mid-American Conference) maintained their position of third place in the Mid-American Conference West Division standings and fifth place in the MAC standings after splitting their weekend contests.

“Our team is still working on how to have a consistent level of preparation or approach to these conferences matches,” Head Coach Ray Gooden said. “It’s a challenge to understand all the parts that go into it. The good news is we rallied from a slow start to battling to five, taking some of that and applying it to Ohio the second night.”

Friday: Kent State

NIU forced a fifth set against the Golden Flashes after being down 2-0, but its rally felt short and the Huskies lost to Kent State in five sets.

“We just didn’t have rhythm,” Gooden said. “Credit to Kent State, they did a really nice job playing defense and being grittier than we were. We recovered in sets three and four and did some good things.”

The Golden Flashes jumped out to a 6-2 lead in the opening set. NIU reduced its deficit to 7-5 after sophomore outside hitter Jori Radtke and junior middle blocker Brinley Milbrath kills. Kent State scored four of the next five points to bring its lead up to 11-6.

After both teams scored two points, senior middle blocker Meg Wolowicz tallied a kill that jump-started a Huskies’ 4-1 run to reduce their deficit to 14-12. Kent State regained control of the set by scoring three successive points en route to outscoring NIU 11-2 to win the opening set 25-14.

The Huskies took an early 3-2 lead in the second set before the Golden Flashes went 5-1 run to take a 7-4 advantage.

NIU tallied two of the next three points, but Kent State went on a 3-0 run to go up 11-6. The Huskies outscored the Golden Flashes 4-2 following their timeout before Kent State rattled off three consecutive points to take a 16-10 lead.

Both teams scored a point before NIU scored four successive points to bring its deficit to 17-15. The teams traded off 5-2 runs, but a Huskies’ attack error gave the Golden Flashes the set win and a 2-0 match advantage.

Kent State took a 9-6 advantage in the third set after the teams opened the set up with a 5-5 tie. Wolowicz, Milbrath and redshirt senior Chrystal McAlpin kills tied the set back up at nine. The Huskies went on a 6-2 run after a Kent State kill to take a 15-12 lead.

Two Radtke kills and a Wolowicz kill ballooned NIU’s lead to six. The Huskies responded to a Golden Flashes kill with a 5-1 run to take a 23-14 advantage. NIU won its first set of the match 25-18 to avoid being swept.

“In our sport, every set is a different chapter,” Gooden said. “Just kind of wipe it away, learn what we can improve on and go from there.”

NIU took an early 2-1 lead in the fourth set before Kent State tallied seven of the ensuing eight points to go up 8-3. With the Golden Flashes leading 11-7, the Huskies went on a 3-0 run capped off by a McAlpin kill to reduce their deficit to 11-10.

Kent State led 16-14 until a sophomore middle blocker Kennedy Wallace kill and two Wolowicz kills gave NIU a 17-16 lead.

A Golden Flashes kill tied the set at 17, but the Huskies retaliated with two more Wolowicz kills to go up 19-17. Kent State went on a 3-0 run to take a one point advantage and forced NIU to call a timeout.

The Huskies responded by sandwiching a Golden Flashes’ attack error in between a sophomore outside hitter Amanda Rullan Vilanova kill and a Wolowicz kill to take a 22-20 lead. NIU scored three consecutive points to win the set 25-21 and force a fifth set.

Kent State opened the fifth set with an 8-3 advantage. Radtke and Wolowicz kills reduced the Huskies deficit to 8-5. The Golden Flashes knocked down a kill before NIU recorded two more points to reduce its deficit to 9-7.

The teams traded points until Kent State notched four successive points to win the set 15-9, and the match 3-2, spoiling the Huskies’ comeback attempt.

Wolowicz recorded a match-high 20 kills. Radtke tallied her 12th double-double of the season with 14 kills and 17 digs. Wallace knocked down eight kills and notched a career-high .636 hitting percentage.

Saturday: Ohio

NIU defeated Ohio for its first five set victory of the 2018 season.

Wolowicz tallied 24 kills, 16 digs and hit .293 versus the Bobcats. Radtke recorded her 13th double-double with 19 kills and 11 digs.

Wallace had a career-high eight blocks and first-year setter Grace Balensiefer registered a career-high 60 assists and 20 digs to become the first Huskie to have at least 60 assists in a match since 2015.

“[Balensiefer] puts our players in position to find success, and our players made plays with confidence and aggressiveness,” Gooden said. “[Balensiefer’s] stability helps our group, and her energy helps our group as well.”

The Huskies took a 6-4 lead before the Bobcats scored three consecutive points to take a one-point advantage.

A Wolowicz kill tied the match at seven, but Ohio’s 3-0 run put the Bobcats up by three. NIU reduced its deficit to 16-14 before tallying three successive points capped off by a Milbrath kill to go up 17-16.

Ohio regained its lead with a 19-17 advantage, but the Huskies scored six of the ensuing seven points to give themselves a 23-20 cushion. The Bobcats rattled off a 3-0 run, but NIU closed out the opening set with back-to-back points to win 25-23.

The Huskies’ momentum from the first set carried over into the second as they opened with a 5-1 lead following a 4-0 run. Ohio rallied back and tied the set at seven. The teams traded off points before NIU went on a 5-1 run to go up 13-9.

The Bobcats rattled off three consecutive points, but a Huskies’ 4-0 run spearheaded by two Milbrath kills gave NIU a 17-12 advantage. Ohio sandwiched two attack errors in between separate 3-0 runs to tie the set at 19.

The Huskies tied the match at 25 after a Radtke kill. The Bobcats won the final two points of the second set and took a 27-25 set victory to tie the match 1-1.

The teams exchanged points to start the third set before Ohio used a 5-0 run to take an early 7-2 advantage. Radtke knocked down a kill before the Bobcats scored five more successive points to go up 12-3.

NIU responded by scoring eight of the next 10 points to bring its deficit down to three. The Huskies did not have a lead during the entire third set and lost the set 25-17, giving Ohio a 2-1 match advantage.

The teams opened the fourth set up with a 5-5 tie after trading off 3-0 runs. The set remained at a tie until NIU used a 4-0 run to take a 12-8 advantage. The Bobcats outscored NIU 5-1 to bring the set to a tie at 13. The Huskies responded by tallying four successive points to go up 17-13.

Ohio retaliated with three consecutive points of its own before Radtke, Wallace and Wolowicz kills gave NIU a 20-17 lead.

There were eight ties and three lead changes during the remainder of the match. The Huskies avoided defeat by closing out the fourth set with a 4-1 run, taking a 32-30 set victory and forcing a fifth set for their third consecutive match.

NIU opened the match-deciding set with a Radtke kill and back-to-back Brinley kills to take an early 3-1 advantage. The teams exchanged 3-0 runs and the Huskies kept their two point lead. Ohio knocked down a kill to reduce its deficit to one. Radtke, Wolowicz, Wallace kills and two Bobcats’ attack errors gave NIU an 11-5 advantage.

Wolowicz knocked down two kills to give the Huskies a 13-6 lead. Ohio tallied its last kill of the set before Wolowicz closed out the set with two more kills to give the Huskies a 3-2 match win and their first five-set victory of the season.

NIU recorded a .226 hitting percentage during the match and held the Bobcats to a .188 mark. The Huskies hit .562 in the fifth set while the Bobcats tallied a -.176 hitting percentage.

“We’ve talked about being fighters,” Gooden said. “On the road, you have to be warriors; that’s the part we’re trying to learn. Our group on the side has to be involved, and they did a really good job, too. Everyone has to be on deck to compete in somebody’s house.”

The Huskies will continue their five-game road trip when they face the Ball State University Cardinals 6 p.m. Friday in Muncie, Indiana and the University of Toledo Rockets 6 p.m. Saturday in Toledo, Ohio.