Head Coach Travis Hudson also reached a milestone in match eight of the season, gaining win number 700 of his career in tonight's matchup. He is one of 10 active coaches to meet the mark, and is one of just four to record them all at the same institution.
"I'm glad all 700 of them didn't go like that." noted the head coach. "What a war, what an absolute battle, but a very important win for our team."
WKU vs Northern Kentucky– 25-23, 23-25, 25-18, 25-16, 15-9
SET 1
After an early Norse kill, Lauren Matthews opened the Hilltopper scoring with a kill. Both teams traded points from then on. WKU created separation thanks to a 4-0 run led by a pair of kills by Katie Isenbarger. The Norse recorded a kill but the Tops ran off a 3-0 run, two off errors, to take a 17-13 lead. NKU tied the set at 21, off a 3-0 run. WKU answered with one of their own, grabbing set one 25-23 finished off by a Matthews kill assisted by Coyle.
SET 2
WKU picked up where they left off in set one with a kill off of Kenadee Coyle. NKU scored three of the next four to take a 5-3 lead. The teams traded off points again in the set. NKU eventually took a 12-8 lead off a 4-0 run, forcing a WKU timeout. Out of the break, NKU rolled off three more before Coyle notched another kill. After the Norse took an 18-11 lead, Bauer dropped one over the net to spark a 7-0 WKU run which forced the Norse to call time just up one, 19-18. The Norse ended set two on a 5-2 run to tie the match at one apiece.
SET 3
Northern Kentucky struck first in set three, but the Hilltoppers recovered quickly with a 6-1 run capped by a block from Briggs and Matthews. The Tops were first to reach 10 forcing the Norse to burn a timeout leading 10-4. Four Hilltopper blocks were recorded in the frame. The Norse cut the lead to two aided by a 4-0 run. Coyle fired a laser to answer with WKU still up 12-9. NKU tied things up at 15 before Isenbarger shut the door with a block to take back the lead. WKU burned a timeout after a 3-0 Norse run had the Hilltoppers down two, 16-18. The Norse regained momentum there on and took the set, 25-18.
Set 4
The Hilltoppers started the fourth frame with a 6-0 run, three of them off the hand of Lauren Matthews. NKU burned their first timeout, then out of the break, answered with a 3-0 run of their own. The two exchanged points until the Hilltoppers got back the six-point margin, with a 4-0 run featuring an ace from Paige Briggs. The Hilltoppers took their largest lead of the set 20-13, off a 3-0 run, featuring two sideout points. WKU continued from there, forcing a fifth set capped by another 3-0 run.
Set 5
After a quick NKU point, Matthews grabbed a kill, floating the ball in between two Norse defenders. The Norse responded with two more but WKU answered with four straight and finished off with an ace from Katie Howard. The Tops notched a kill and forced the Norse to call time, leading 6-3. Briggs recorded her third kill of the set to give the Tops an 11-6 lead. The Norse grabbed a quick two points but WKU ended the night with a kill by Kenadee Coyle, securing 15 points and the victory over NKU.
NEXT UP
The Hilltoppers are back inside Diddle Arena to see Toledo in the second match of the Hilltoppers' weekend stand tomorrow. Action starts Friday, Sept. 9 at 6 p.m. CT.
POST-MATCH NOTES
- WKU used the lineup of Paige Briggs, Katie Howard, Lauren Matthews, Katie Isenbarger, Kenadee Coyle, Callie Bauer, and Abby Schaefer at libero for the match. This is the only line-up Travis Hudson has used for all eight matches the Hilltoppers have played this season.
- WKU leads all-time series against Northern Kentucky now 3-0.
- Not since Lauren Stuckel at Tennessee in 2009, redshirt-freshman setter Callie Bauer recorded a triple-double (10k, 39a, 10d) for the record books on the evening.
- Matthews garnered 18 kills on the evening, just one short of a career record 1,500 in her five seasons on The Hill.
- Freshman libero Abby Schaefer led the reception for the Hilltoppers with 17 digs, following suit was Ashley Hood tabbing 15, and Paige Briggs with 13.
- With the win, the Hilltoppers improve to 7-1 on the season and now 1-0 in their first five-set match of the season.
- Marking the milestone, head coach Travis Hudson is now 700-219 across his career.
- WKU Volleyball is now up to an all-time program record of 978-493 with Thursday's win.
How to Follow WKU Volleyball: For complete information on WKU Volleyball, follow the team on Twitter at @WKUVolleyball and head coach Travis Hudson at @TravisHudsonWKU. The team is also on Instagram and Facebook.
