Jennifer Wirtz

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. - Rachel Ellis recorded 23 kills and 16 digs Saturday as Drury rallied from a 2-0 deficit to stun the Northern Kentucky University volleyball team, 22-30, 17-30, 30-19, 30-18, 15-10, at Weiser Gym.

Drury took advantage of 39 attacking errors by NKU to stage the comeback. The resurgent Panthers - who started the season with a 3-9 record - improved to 6-9 overall, 3-1 in the Great Lakes Valley Conference.

NKU, which began the weekend riding a seven-match winning streak, lost for the second straight day and dropped to 13-4 overall, 2-2 in the GLVC.

Kristina Eisenmenger led NKU with 18 kills and a .351 hitting percentage. The freshman right-side hitter also collected three blocks.

Liz Holmes added 17 kills and 11 digs for the Norse, who hit just .163 as a team. NKU’s Julie Lewis finished with 14 kills, while teammate Jennifer Wirtz had 13 kills. Lynne Fischesser added 20 digs and four service aces.

Andrea Lanham recorded 58 assists and 14 digs for NKU, which easily won the opening two games. During the final three games, however, the Norse committed 26 of their 39 attacking errors.

Drury, meanwhile, had just eight errors over the final three games and won the final stanza despite attacking at just a .200 clip. The Panthers hit .202 for the match but finished with three solo blocks and 23 block assists.

Megan Warhol added 13 kills for Drury, which evened the all-time series with NKU at 1-1. The Norse defeated Drury on Aug. 27, 1999, at Edwardsville, Ill., in the only previous meeting.

NKU plays a GLVC road match against Bellarmine at 7 p.m. Tuesday in Louisville, Ky. The Norse return home Friday and play host to Wisconsin-Parkside at 7 p.m. in Regents Hall.

BOX SCORE