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UPSET CITY! Wildcat Volleyball Stuns No. 7 SCSU
 This story was written by NMU Sports Information. (NMU Photo) HOUGHTON, Mich. - The Northern Michigan volleyball team earned a monumental early-season victory on Saturday morning, besting the No. 7 team in the country, the St. Cloud State Huskies, in five sets to close out the Up North Tournament on a high note. "Obviously I couldn't be more proud of this team and what they just did, but it's important to understand we are prepared for this moment," Mike Lozier said following the victory. "We just seized on this opportunity. It was a team victory. We all did our job, and handled every opportunity so well. Go Cats!" A total team effort was needed, and that's exactly what the Green and Gold got. Northern had three players with at least a dozen kills, led by Jacqueline Smith with 16. The 5th year senior came through exactly when needed, posting five kills in the final set, including the first and final points. After a 14-kill career night less than 24 hours ago, McKenzie Gruner again one-upped her career-high with 15. It was quite the weekend for the junior middle blocker, as she posted double-digit kills in all three matches. "I'm so proud of this team today for executing how we're capable of playing," added Gruner. "Especially after last night, bouncing back with so much grit and determination. I know we're going to continue to do great things, as it doesn't stop here." Right behind Smith and Gruner was the Wildcat most native to the Houghton area, Helen Beiring. The sophomore from Calumet was a force opposite Smith all match, tallying a single-game best 12 kills. In spite of that, it took more than just the attack to pull off the victory. Facing one of the best attacking teams in the country that has already knocked off three nationally-ranked teams this season including a victory over No. 1 and the defending national champs, the Wildcats were as stout as can be at the net. The Wildcat front line totaled 14 blocks, the most in a match since the 2017 season. The effort was led by Gruner, Beiring, and freshman KC Fortune who all contributed to five or more rejections. The match started with the Wildcats falling in the opening set 25-21, with SCSU hitting .406 and NMU not far behind at .357. The energy shifted mid-set of the second, as NMU rattled off seven straight points to go from trailing to up by five, 18-13. Caylie Barlage added two aces on the run. The Huskies rallied to tie the set late, but Meghan Meyer capped off a 25-23 set win with a kill. The back-and-forth action transpired to the third, with the teams exchanging 3-5 point runs. The 'Cats scored six of seven to pull within a point, but St. Cloud would add a five-point run to take set three 25-19. The fourth set opened just as the first three did for NMU, with a kill inside from Gruner. Northern scored four straight after a deadlock to lead 9-5. The Wildcat blockers broke through in the fourth with five blocks. The lead ballooned to as many as seven in the set, but SCSU made another run to pull within three. A late timeout from Lozier set up a picture-perfect dig-set-kill to push the match to five, winning the fourth 25-21. Smith's kill to secure set four was mirrored to open the pivotal fifth. In a match between the two active career kill leaders in the nation in Smith and SCSU's Kenzie Foley, the two showed exactly why they have been the cream of the crop the past few years, exchanging kill-for-kill in a must win fifth set. With NMU up 14-9, Foley added two kills in a four-point run for the Huskies, but Smith came up with the final kill to take set five 15-13, and the match. The reigning national player of the year, St. Cloud's Foley led all players with 32 kills to match a career-high. The Huskies hit .242 for the match while NMU was right behind at .235. |
