Beginning its longest road trip of the season, NIU volleyball started on the right step defeating Kent State Friday night in five sets.

After taking the first set 25-15, Kent State came back to grab the next two, 25-20 and 25-22.

“We came out and had a really good start against Kent [State],” said NIU head coach Ray Gooden. “And then they did a really good job making adjustments.”

But the Huskies (23-2 overall, 9-1 MAC) would not go quietly. Putting together a three-point swing at the end of the fourth set, led with kills by outside hitters Lauren Wicinski and Allison McGlaughlin,  NIU took the momentum into a decisive fifth.

“I don’t know if we’re excited to go to five,” Gooden said. “We just take each set as it is, and if we’re able to get some momentum going into it, that’s a really positive thing for our group.” 

The Huskies continued their dominance of fifth sets, defeating the Flashes (10-15, 3-7) 15-11.

In the second of five road matches, the Huskies notched another victory Saturday night, taking down defending MAC champion Ohio Bobcats.

“Ohio still has the history of winning the MAC; they’ve always been tough at home,” Gooden said. “Our group continues to focus on our team. This was one of our best team wins [in] for sure the last couple weeks. It was a really good team win.”

Senior outside hitter Sue Jacobi led the Bobcats (13-10, 5-5) with 22 kills and .415 hitting percentage, but it was not enough to match the spread offense of the Huskies. NIU had three players with double-digit kills. Freshman middle blocker Sarah Angelos continued her consistency in hitting percentage with .474 and added 11 kills. McGlaughlin added 18 kills, a .389 hitting percentage and nine digs.

“[Allison] had a great night,” Gooden said. “From a level of her level of success and her level of command on the court, I think it was one of the better matches she’s played. She had a really good one earlier this year, and I think she may have topped it tonight.”

The Huskies as a team tallied 60 kills and 44 digs. Of the 58 assists, 54 went to junior setter Kristin Hoffman, who has now surpassed the 1,000 mark with 1,021.

“Kristin is our captain of the offense,” senior libero Maddies Hughes said. “She’s been in control the entire season. I think she’s a steady force on our team, and she’s been super consistent.”

The Huskies also suffered an injury in sophomore defensive specialist Sue Hayes. Hayes was able to get 10 digs Friday night, but sustained a lower body injury as well. Gooden and Hughes said she will be day-to-day and should be back next week, but may miss a game or two.

Despite the injury, the Huskies are confident in their ability to continue adapting to the competitiveness in the MAC, especially in their own division. On Friday night the West swept the East on the road, an achievement unknown in the last several years.

“This year the West is really dominant, so unfortunately for us it’s bad,” Hughes said. “It hasn’t been like this in previous years. It’s something that is new for us and puts a fire under our butts because we have to play all those teams again.”

Links:

NIU Volleyball: http://www.niuhuskies.com/sports/w-volley/niu-w-volley-body.html

Ohio Volleyball: http://www.ohiobobcats.com/sports/w-volley/ohio-w-volley-body.html

Kent State Volleyball: http://www.kentstatesports.com/sports/wvball/2010-11/releases/20101023ep2rpv