Wildcats led 2-0 over Colorado School of Mines, but fell 3-2; dropped 3-0 decision to Westmont
HAYWARD, Calif. – The Northern Michigan volleyball team led 2-0 against undefeated Colorado School of Mines, but the Orediggers rallied for a reverse sweep as the Wildcats fell in five sets in their first of two matches on Friday.
The Wildcats opened the first set with a 25-22 win before taking the thrilling second in extra points, 30-28. Leading 12-6 in the third and two points away from the sweep at 23-21, the Orediggers rallied for the final four points of the frame to take the third 25-23. That momentum shift held the rest of the match, as they would go on to control the fourth 25-18 and the final frame 15-9.
Allie Barlow handed out 50 assists and spread the wealth again on offense. Kaylie McIntosh (18 kills), Anna O’Keefe (17), KC Fortune (10), and Laynie Russell (10) all reached double figures. Russell posted 3.5 blocks, a high for the Green and Gold this season.
The Orediggers were led by Naomi Romslo with 15 kills and Kaiya Gilbert with 45 assists.
How it Happened
Three early kills from O’Keefe helped build a 7-3 lead in the first. The Wildcats then turned to the middle, getting kills from Larsen Bonnstetter and Russell to push it to 11-6. Mines answered with three straight to cut the gap to two, but NMU didn’t let it get any closer. A 5-0 run, fueled by two more O’Keefe kills and two from KC Fortune, stretched the lead to 18-10. Mines rallied with six straight to get back within two, but another O’Keefe kill stopped the bleeding.
NMU held on for a 25-22 win, Kaylie McIntosh closing it out. O’Keefe led the way with six of NMU’s 19 kills as the Wildcats hit .357 in the set.
Set two settled into a back-and-forth rhythm early. A McIntosh ace gave NMU a slim 12-11 edge near the midpoint. Neither team could pull away as the set wore on, and ten straight points traded hands to deadlock it at 20. NMU turned to its freshmen down the stretch. O’Keefe, Olivia Ziemer, and Russell strung together consecutive kills to push ahead 23-20.
NMU reached set point at 24-22, but Mines answered with two straight to force extra points. What followed was the longest rally of the season, with NMU eventually winning the point on a Mines attack error, only for the Orediggers to answer right back. Mines earned its own set point at 26-25, but Bonnstetter kept the set alive. Fortune put two more set points in place with kills and NMU turned once again to O’Keefe, who closed it out 30-28 to put the Wildcats up 2-0 in the match.
NMU carried that momentum into the third, opening with two kills, two aces, and a block for a quick 8-3 lead. Two more kills from McIntosh pushed it to 13-7. Still holding on 19-15, the match began to turn. Mines scored five of the next six to tie it at 20. O’Keefe and Russell answered again with kills and a block to lead 23-21. Two points away from a sweep, Mines responded with a four-point run to steal the set 25-23 and extend the match.
The fourth set opened with Mines ahead 5-2, but NMU answered with a 4-0 run and led 8-7. Mines then responded with five straight to force an NMU timeout, trailing 12-8.
Kills from McIntosh and O’Keefe tied it at 14, but Mines pushed back ahead 18-15. From there, NMU’s unforced errors opened the door, and the Orediggers had a 5-0 run to lead 23-17 before finishing the set 25-18, forcing a fifth set for the second straight match.
A block from Russell and Barlow opened the fifth, and back-to-back aces from Taylor Smaka gave NMU an early 5-2 cushion. Four early kills from McIntosh kept the Wildcats in front, 7-5, but Mines came storming back to take a 9-8 lead. Back-to-back blocks pushed the margin to 13-9, and the Orediggers completed the comeback, closing it out 15-9 to steal the match after trailing 2-0.
In the first-ever meeting against the Westmont College Warriors, the Northern Michigan volleyball team fell in straight sets, 25-27, 23-25, and 16-25, late on Friday night at the Cal State East Bay Invitational.
The Wildcats held late leads in each of the first two sets, but the Warriors controlled the bookends of all three sets to secure the sweep and move to 2-4 on the season. NMU dropped to 3-4.
Laynie Russell reached 10 kills for the second straight match to lead the Wildcats. Westmont was paced by Jordan Weston with 12.
How it Happened
Westmont jumped ahead 5-2 to start, but NMU answered with four straight, with two kills from Russell keeping it tight. Russell had NMU’s first three kills of the match, though Westmont led 12-10 near the midpoint.
Trailing 18-15, NMU strung together five straight points to grab a 20-18 lead, but the Warriors responded by taking six of the next seven to reach set point at 24-21. NMU wasn’t done, as a block and three more points forced extra points, but Westmont closed it out 27-25.
Westmont carried that momentum into the second, opening with a 3-0 lead. Anna O’Keefe and KC Fortune each added a pair of kills, but three service errors on six total serves left NMU trailing 8-6. Kills kept coming from every direction, as two from Russell and two more from McIntosh pushed NMU ahead 12-10, but a Westmont response forced an NMU timeout down 17-15.
Larsen Bonnstetter delivered a kill and a block to force a Westmont timeout of their own, with NMU up 21-20, but the Warriors closed on a 4-0 run to win 25-23 and take a 2-0 match lead.
The Warriors started strong again in the third, jumping ahead 6-1 and holding firm at 13-8 to force NMU’s two timeouts by that point. The Wildcats clawed back within one at 14-13, but Westmont answered with six of the next seven to build a 20-14 lead and closed it out 25-16 to complete the sweep.
Up Next
Northern wraps up its West Coast trip against San Francisco State on Saturday, September 5, at 4 p.m. EST.
