The Purdue Northwest Volleyball team gave a strong effort at home against Northern Michigan, but came up short in a GLIAC match-up on Saturday afternoon, 3-1.

The Basics

• Records: Purdue Northwest (6-7,3-4), Northern Michigan (7-9,5-2)
• Location: John Friend Court – Hammond, Indiana
• Attendance: 150

Inside The Numbers

• (24-26, 18-25, 25-21, 23-25)
• Purdue Northwest was led offensively by senior Allyson Cathey (New Albany, Ind./New Albany) with 17 kills and Arra Cottrell (LeClaire, Iowa/Pleasant Valley) with 16.
• Senior Marina Gronkiewicz (Munster, Ind./Munster) dished out 45 assists and served up four aces.
• Senior Livia Thomsen (Bettendorf, Iowa/Pleasant Valley) collected 17 digs to lead PNW defensively, while sophomore Kennedi Brass (Shorewood, Ill./Minooka) added ten.
• Cottrell, Cathey, and senior Amanda Hasse (Peotone, Ill./Peotone) each recorded two blocks at the net.
• PNW served aggressively, registering 11 aces, including four each from Gronkiewicz and Cottrell.
• McKenzie Gruner and Kaylie McIntosh each tallied 14 kills to lead Northern Michigan, while Madison York added 13.
• Liesl Haugen anchored NMU defensively with a match-high 22 digs.
• Allie Barlow set the offense in motion with 47 assists and chipped in eight digs.
• Emilia Gulock and McKenzie Gruner paced NMU at the net with four blocks apiece.
• Kaylie McIntosh added two service aces as NMU totaled four on the day.

The Breakdown

• Northern Michigan opened with a tight 26-24 win in the first set, overcoming a late push from Purdue Northwest. NMU hit .163 with 14 kills while holding PNW to a .125 percentage.
• In the second set, NMU surged ahead behind a .375 team hitting percentage and 17 kills, committing just two errors. The Wildcats capitalized on cleaner play to take a 2-0 match lead.
• Purdue Northwest responded in set three, hitting a match-best .345 and limiting errors. Despite NMU's strong .314 hitting, PNW found rhythm behind 13 kills and timely defense to win 25-21.
• The fourth set saw both teams trading points until NMU closed out the match 25-23. The Wildcats hit .233 while PNW dipped to .106, struggling with eight errors in the final frame.
• Northern Michigan outperformed Purdue Northwest in total kills (61-51), hitting percentage (.267 to .194), assists (57-48), digs (73-60), and blocks (10-9). PNW had the edge in service aces, 11-4.

Up Next

• Purdue Northwest looks to defend home court once again when they host Michigan Tech in conference action on Sunday, October 12. Game time is set for 2:00 PM CT John Friend Court in Hammond, Indiana.