ALLENDALE, Mich. - Sladjana Vasiljevic and Laura Zaskowski each recorded 11 kills Friday as the Northwood (Mich.) University volleyball team defeated Northern Kentucky University, 30-23, 30-26, 30-22, at the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference/Great Lakes Valley Conference Crossover Tournament.
Tracy Martin added 10 kills and a .563 hitting percentage as Northwood - ranked No. 22 nationally in the NCAA Division II poll - improved to 10-1.
Cammi Welter led NKU with 11 kills. Northwood had 12 service aces, including five by Jelena Mijatovic. Sara Taylor finished with 21 assists for NKU.
In the nightcap, NKU dropped a 30-28, 30-21, 30-27 decision to No. 4 Grand Valley State University. Kristin Koralewski led NKU (2-4) with seven kills, two service aces and a .294 hitting percentage, while Taylor added 32 assists and nine digs for the Norse.
Elisa Joris had 14 kills and a .619 hitting percentage to lead Grand Valley State, which improved to 7-1. All-American outside hitter Carly Miller added 14 kills and a .462 hitting percentage for the Lakers, who hit .352 as a team.
A year ago, Grand Valley State defeated NKU twice. The Lakers now own a 16-3 lead in the all-time series with the Norse and have won six consecutive matches against NKU.
NKU will conclude the tournament at 3 p.m. Saturday with a match against Northern Michigan University.
Kristin Koralewski