RUSTON, La. – The Northwestern State Demons' volleyball team won its third straight game in a 3-1 (21-25, 29-27, 25-21 and 26-24) victory over the ULM Warhawks Friday afternoon during Day 2 of the Bulldog Bash hosted by Louisiana Tech.
The Demons (3-6) and Warhawks (2-5) came out ready to battle as the first set was tied at 7-7 after a block by NSU freshman
Gillian Grace Wolf. NSU pulled ahead 14-11 after kills by Wolf and
Elsie Sanchez. However, ULM scored three straight points to tie the match at 14-14 before a ball handling error by the Warhawks gave NSU a 15-14 lead at the first media timeout.
The highly competitive battle continued in the first set which saw six ties (4-4, 5-5, 7-7, 10-10, 14-14, 17-17). However, ULM scored six straight points on three kills and three attack errors by the Demons to make it 21-17 Warhawks. The Demons stopped the run as
Kenadii Winfrey's kill and an attack error pulled the Demons to 21-19. But a kill by ULM's Kenzie Behl and an ace by Morgan Howard made it 23-19 as they held on to win the opening set 25-21 on Abby Cunningham's kill.
In the second set, NSU fell behind 8-4 before roaring back to take a 10-9 lead on
Olivia Nzioki's kill. The two teams traded points as the game remained tied at 20-20 after
Jade Longlad's ace. NSU evened the match at 22-22 as a timeout was called with the second set hanging in the grasp.
The Demons thwarted four set points from the Warhawks as they had the lead at 27-26 following Nzioki's kill and an attack error by ULM. The Warhawks tied the match at 27-27 before Nzioki's block gave the Demons their second set point. Ultimately, it was Sanchez's fifth kill of the match that closed out the second set on the assist from McFarland for a heartstopping 29-27 Demons' win.
The Demons had a 20-17 lead in the third set as they used the momentum from the second set. Yet again, in crunch time it was Sanchez who got the block to make it 24-20 NSU before she clinched with a kill for a 25-21 win. NSU led two sets to one.
In the fourth set, it was all Demons early as they took a 12-5 lead following a kill by Elizabeth Murgurza. The Warhawks mounted a comeback to take the 19-18 lead. NSU tied the game 22-22 and had match point and 24-23. After ULM tied the game at 24-24, Sanchez's kill gave NSU match point. The Demons clinched the win on an attack error by the Warhawks.
"I love the resilience of this group," said Demon head coach
Ben Kaszeta. "We're learning how to get things done. We have a long way to go still but this was definitely a step in the right direction. Three kids in double digits kills. That is huge for us. I love it. We still have things to work on for sure. Serving. Some passing kinks to work off. But this group wants to get better. Monroe (ULM) has some great athletes. They tested us really well and we responded tonight in great fashion. I'm proud of them."
NSU was led by Sanchez, Nzioki and Craig with 14 kills each. Senior
Jade Longlad had 41 assists to add to her Southland Conference lead. Sophomore
Emmarie McFarland had 24 digs for her ninth straight game with double-digit digs and 26
th in her Demon career.
"No matter how much we're down, energy will always bring us back up." Said Craig.
Remarkably, the Demons manage to thwart off five set point opportunities by the Warhawks in the second and fourth set and six out of seven for the match.
NSU will wrap up the tournament on Saturday afternoon when they face the Grambling State Tigers (2-4) at 1 p.m. The Demons defeated GSU 3-1 back on Aug. 29 at the Dr. Mary Jo Wynn Invitational in Springfield, Missouri.
