HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. - Kristin Koralewski finished with 10 kills, nine digs and a .381 hitting percentage Thursday night as the Northern Kentucky University volleyball team defeated the University of Missouri-St. Louis, 31-29, 30-16, 30-15, in the first round of the Great Lakes Valley Conference Tournament in Regents Hall.
Cammi Welter and Kaliana Kalache each added nine kills as top-seeded NKU extended its win streak to nine and improved to 24-10. Kalache also collected three service aces and five blocks for the Norse, who are 15-0 all-time against Missouri-St. Louis.
NKU trailed 29-27 in the first game, but the Norse ran off the final four points to take a 31-29 win. Maggie Pugh converted an attack to make the score 29-28, and Missouri-St. Louis had three consecutive hitting errors to end the game.
In the second game, NKU hit .440 and rolled to the victory. The Norse closed out the match in the third game by converting 16 of 24 attack attempts with just one error for a .625 hitting percentage.
Sara Taylor finished with 34 assists and two service aces for NKU. The Norse limited Missouri-St. Louis to a .027 hitting percentage.
NKU will face fifth-seeded University of Southern Indiana (20-8) in the GLVC semifinals at 7:30 p.m. Friday. Southern Indiana - the defending GLVC Tournament champion - advanced Thursday with a three-game victory over fourth-seeded Quincy University in the first round.
Second-seeded Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville - which knocked off Lewis University in the first round - will play third-seeded University of Indianapolis in the other semifinal match at 5 p.m. Friday. SIUE is 25-6, while Indianapolis owns a 27-10 record.
Indianapolis advanced with a three-game sweep against the University of Wisconsin-Parkside in the first round.
The GLVC championship match is scheduled for 2 p.m. Saturday. The GLVC Tournament winner will receive an automatic berth in the NCAA Division II Tournament.
NKU is currently ranked No. 3 in the NCAA Division II Great Lakes Region poll. Pairings for the NCAA Division II Tournament will be announced Sunday night.
GLVC Volleyball Tournament
(hosted by Northern Kentucky University)
Thursday, Nov. 13
#3 Indianapolis def. #6 Wisconsin-Parkside, 3-0
#2 SIUE def. #7 Lewis, 3-1
#5 Southern Indiana def. #4 Quincy, 3-0
#1 NKU def. #8 Missouri-St. Louis, 3-0
Friday, Nov. 14
Semifinals
SIUE vs. Indianapolis, 5 p.m.
Southern Indiana vs. NKU, 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, Nov. 15
Championship, 2 p.m.
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Kaliana Kalache |