Volleyball Earns 3-1 Win At Hillsdale

The Northwood University volleyball team posted a 3-1 road win over Hillsdale Tuesday night (September 25). Set scores were 28-30, 25-21, 25-23, 25-22.

Northwood is now 10-3 overall, 5-0 in the GLIAC. Hillsdale falls to 4-9 overall, 2-3 in the GLIAC.

The 5-0 start in GLIAC play is the best for Northwood since the 2000 season. That year, the Timberwolves won their first 16 conference matches en route to the best record in the league.

The first set appeared to be an easy win for the Chargers, as the led 24-20. But Northwood fought off five set points in all, including four in a row, to extend the frame. NU eventually had a pair of set points of their own, but the Chargers scored the final three points to earn the 1-0 lead. Both teams hit well in the set – NU finished at .319 (20-5-47), while Hillsdale hit .459 (18-1-37).

In the second set, a five-point Northwood run with the score tied 6-6 gave the Timberwolves a lead they would not give up. Hillsdale got no closer than three points the rest of the set.

The third set was tight, but Northwood never allowed Hillsdale to lead at any point. The score was tied at 22-22 when the Timberwolves scored three of the final four points to earn a 2-1 lead.

It appeared Northwood was on its way to an easy fourth set victory, jumping out to a 14-5 run thanks to an 8-0 run. But Hillsdale fought back immediately, scoring five straight points of their own to make the score 14-10. The Chargers eventually got back within one at 22-21, but Northwood registered three of the final four points to earn the win.

For the match, Northwood hit at a lower attack percentage than Hillsdale (.333 to .262), but used serving and passing to earn the win. Northwood held an 11-4 edge in aces for the match and out-dug the Chargers 66-58. The Timberwolves had 31 more attack attempts in the match (172-141), leading NU to a 72-57 edge in kills.

Northwood's main outside hitters had big games – junior Zina Liubymova (Dnepropetrovsk, Ukraine) and freshman Juliia Pakohomenko (Donetsk, Ukraine). Liubymova had 23 kills and 13 digs, while Pakhomenko had 21 kills and 18 digs. Jordan Dunn (Bowling Green, Ohio) had 53 assists, three aces and nine digs.

Northwood will travel to Walsh Friday night (September 28). Match time is set for 7 p.m.