ABERDEEN, S.D. - The Northern State volleyball team won their first NSIC match of the year by defeating Bemidji State in four games. The Wolves narrowly edged out the Beavers to improve their season record to 6-2, while BSU falls to 2-3.
Emily Knaeble (Sr., Andover, Minn.) tied a career high hitting performance, leading the Wolves with 21 kills on the night.
The Wolves came out strong and jumped ahead of Bemidji State early in the first game, but hitting errors and a Beaver offensive attack brought the score close late in the game. Northern sneaked away with the 31-29 win following a BSU attacking error and a kill from
Kelsey Aden. Game two was even more close, with the final score being 32-30 in favor of NSU. Bemidji State took the third game 30-27, but the Wolves came back to win the match with a 31-29 game four.
The Wolves had double digit hitting performances from five players on the evening. Knaeble topped all players with 21 kills and was followed by
Kelsey Aden (Jr., St. James, Minn.) with 17,
Stephanie Perez (So., Rio Piedras, PR) with 15,
Jill Rasmussen (So., Sioux Falls, S.D.) with 12, and
Melanie Perez (Jr., Rio Piedras, PR) with 11. The Wolves tallied 77 total kills in the match, while Bemidji came up with just 61.
Northern's defensive effort was equally impressive. The team had a season high 14.5 blocks in the match, including six assists and a solo block from Aden. Rasmussen also had six assists on the night, while
Stephanie Perez added a career high five. For another season high, the Wolves totaled 113 digs on the night.
Melanie Perez led all players with 35, while
Blayne Olson chipped in with 27. With her third triple-double of the season,
Stephanie Perez had 14 digs in addition to her 15 kills and 50 set assists. The Wolves hit .165 in the match.
The Beavers were led in hitting by Heather Sampson with 19 kills and Brittney Burns with 16. Brie Groskreutz led the team with 31 digs. BSU notched 8.0 team blocks and out-dug the Wolves 116 to 113. They hit .128 on the night.
Northern returns to action tomorrow afternoon with a match against Minnesota, Crookston. The 70's themed event will start at 4:00 pm.
