WKU Claims Buckeye Invitational Crown; Anderson (MVP), Cavanaugh, Lucas Named All-Tourament

Saturday, September 16

Bexley, Ohio

Noon CT

Western Kentucky University

13-2

Northern Illinois

1-14

WKU

NIU

Photo by: Steve Roberts, WKU Athletics

WKU Claims Buckeye Invitational Crown; Anderson (MVP), Cavanaugh, Lucas Named All-Tourament

9/16/2017 2:24:00 PM | Women's Volleyball

Box Score Buckeye Invite Stats WKU 3, NIU 0 - Box Score (PDF)

BEXLEY, Ohio – Taking care of business for the ninth-straight match, WKU Volleyball also claimed its third weekend tournament title across the first four weeks of 2017 action by sweeping Northern Illinois on Saturday at the Buckeye Invitational. The Lady Toppers climbed to 13-2 on the season by topping their sixth opponent on the year that appeared in last year's NCAA Tournament.

Rachel Anderson was named the Buckeye Invitational MVP after posting a team-best 43 kills on a .479 attack rate. Alyssa Cavanaugh (41 kills, .364%) and Jessica Lucas (12.0 assists/set, 23 digs) joined their fellow All-American on the weekend's All-Tournament Team.

"This was a great way to finish off the weekend," head coach Travis Hudson shared. "Northern Illinois plays the game very hard and we had to match that effort level to be successful today. I'm very proud of the way our kids competed this weekend."

On day two of the Buckeye Invitational, WKU came out firing on all cylinders against Northern Illinois. The Lady Toppers struck quick and often in set one, jumping out to a 4-0 lead before NIU got on the board. WKU went on to make a run for a 7-1 lead to force a timeout before an 8-2 run gave the Lady Toppers a double-digit lead. With as large as a 16-point lead in the frame at one point, WKU claimed the first set in a 25-12 decision. The Red and White hit .389 as a team in the frame while holding the Huskies to a .034 rate.

Northern Illinois came out strong in set two and owned a 5-1 lead over WKU early on. A three-point run pushed NIU's advantage to 11-8 over WKU but the Lady Toppers pushed through down the stretch claiming the lead for good following a pair of Hallie Shelton service aces. The Red and White tallied 10 of the frame's final 14 points for a 25-20 victory and a 2-0 lead entering the break. WKU hit a match-best .464 in the frame, connecting on 16-of-28 attacks for kills. Behind the service line, the Lady Toppers notched four of their six aces of the match in set two, including two off the hand of Anderson.

Third set action saw five ties and one lead change after the Huskies were the first on the board. The final tie of the set came at the 16-16 mark before Anderson notched her 13th kill of the match to give WKU the lead for good. After NIU pulled back within one at 18-17, the Lady Toppers went on a five-point run before Cavanaugh gave WKU match point with a kill and Sydney Engle closed the book with an ace for the 25-18 victory.

The straight-set victory is the ninth sweep for the Lady Toppers on the season and the fourth in the squad's last five matches. Across WKU's last 17 sets of action, the Red and White have dropped just one frame (vs. Dayton).

Anderson led the WKU offensive attack with 13 kills and a .500 hitting percentage while Cavanaugh was right behind her with 12 kills on 26 swings for a .385 rate from the pin. Engle finished just two kills shy of a double double, filling the stat sheet with eight kills, 10 digs, three blocks, two assists and an ace.

Taylor Dellinger added seven kills on a .312 attack efficiency while Kayland Jackson and Sophia Cerino each chipped in three kills.

WKU worked at a .375 collective offense rate and registered a combined .384 hitting percentage across the three weekend matches. Lucas facilitated the offense with a three-set high 38 assists against Northern Illinois. The senior also had two kills, six digs, two blocks and an ace.

Two Lady Toppers notched double-digit dig efforts in Engle and Emma Kowalkowski, both recording 10. Darby Music added four.

At the net, WKU continued to put up its big block, registering nine stuffs on the day as Amara Listenbee and Engle led the way with three each. Anderson, Cavanaugh, Jackson and Lucas each contributed a pair of blocks.

Next up for the WKU Volleyball unit is Conference USA action as the Lady Toppers will hit the road for Boca Raton, Fla., and Charlotte, N.C., to take on Florida Atlantic and Charlotte during the opening weekend of league play. Action will kick off Friday from the Sunshine State with a 6 p.m. CT tilt. WKU will face off against the 49ers on Sunday in a noon CT contest.