 |
INDIANAPOLIS - By Great Lakes Valley Conference travel standards, a trip to the University of Indianapolis is extremely short for Northern Kentucky University. And short would also describe the NKU volleyball team's stay at the GLVC Tournament, which began Friday and also ended in the opening round for the Norse. Rockhurst knocked off NKU, 26-30, 30-24, 25-30, 30-25, 15-12, at the Ruth Lilly Center to advance to the GLVC Tournament semifinals. The Hawks (22-11) rallied from a 2-1 deficit in games and sent the 25th-ranked Norse (26-8) packing for home painfully early. It marked the second straight year NKU suffered a first-round elimination in the GLVC Tournament. Last season, Indianapolis knocked off the Norse in the opening round. Friday's setback also left the Norse at the mercy of the NCAA Division II national selection committee, which will decide the 64-team field this weekend. NKU is ranked No. 5 in the latest Great Lakes Region poll and, given its tough schedule and victories against Ashland, Hillsdale and Southern Illinois at Edwardsville this season, would appear a lock to receive an at-large berth. But that's assuming upset winners in both the GLVC and Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference don't steal the automatic bids. NKU, however, can do nothing now but wait for the announcement on Monday. Kristina Eisenmenger hammered down 25 kills and attacked at a .404 clip to lead NKU, which hit only .183 for the match. The junior right-side hitter also added five blocks. Liz Holmes finished with 22 kills and 12 digs, but the Rockhurst defense held NKU's standout middle hitter to a .216 hitting percentage. Holmes, who was named GLVC Player of the Year earlier in the week, also added four blocks. Natalie Forbes dished out 64 assists and collected a team-leading 16 digs, while Tristen Dye had 19 kills and 14 digs. Rockhurst's balanced offensive attack featured five players who recorded double-figure kill totals. Audrey Boese and Rachel Fowler each had 13 kills, while Emily Crowley added 11 kills. Fowler finished with eight blocks for the Hawks, who finished with an 18-10 edge in team blocks over the smaller Norse. Savannah Leeper had nine blocks and 10 kills. NKU held a 2-1 lead after three games, but Rockhurst pulled out a 30-25 decision in the fourth stanza to set up the deciding set. The Hawks jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the final game and hit .385 en route to the victory. Boese ended the match by converting an attack, sending NKU to the sideline to await the NCAA Tournament pairings.
|
