This story was written by NMU Sports Information
MARQUETTE, Mich. - It was quite the home opener for the Northern Michigan volleyball team on Friday night, as the Wildcats (2-9, 1-2) rallied to hand the Parkside Rangers (9-1, 2-1) their first loss of the season, 26-24, 17-25, 13-25, 25-21, 15-7.
After Northern took the opening set in thrilling fashion 26-24, Parkside responded with decisive wins in the second and third. Trailing two sets to one, Northern persevered as it did throughout the night.
Perhaps their biggest test came in the fifth, when they trailed 6-3 in the race to 15. From that point, the 'Cats clawed out of the hole and took over the rest of the way with a remarkable 9-0 run, highlighted by six emphatic kills. NMU scored 12 of the final 13 points overall to get Vandament loud and rocking by the time the final point was secured.
"I am insanely proud of the team for their resilience tonight," said assistant coach Kamryn Duffield. "This was an all-around gritty victory. Both of our middles had an awesome performance and our block and defense was extremely disciplined which led us to the win. We are so happy to get a win in our first match in Vandament this year. Shoutout to all of our supporters who came out tonight!"
Northern used a balanced offensive display with four hitters reaching double-digit kills, the first time since their season-opening win over Wheeling. Senior captain McKenzie Gruner led the way with 13 kills, Madison York added another 11, and Emilia Gulock and Sydney Bartels each chipped in 10. Both teams totaled 52 kills, while NMU hit .135 on the night.
The 'Cats edged Parkside at the net with a 9-8 blocks advantage. Gulock led the team with three while Kaylie McIntosh added two. Liesl Haugen recorded 25 of NMU's season-best 91 kills and Allie Barlow handed out 39 assists. The Rangers were led by Sam Fisch with 18 kills and Natalie Harris with five aces and 26 digs.
Now in his 9th season, Mike Lozier improved to 7-2 in the home opener as NMU's head coach.
