ASHLAND, Wis. -- In a win or go home scenario for North Central University (NCU) volleyball, the Rams showcased their most dominating performance of the 2021 spring season yet on Thursday night. The Rams hit the road to face the Northland College (NC) Lumberjills for the third time on the campaign, where they managed to sweep the Lumberjills in three straight sets (25-16, 25-20, 25-18). NCU has now locked in their spot in the
UMAC consolation championship this coming Saturday, where they will take on the number six seeded Bethany Lutheran College Vikings.
Game Recap
North Central came out in found themselves in a back-and-forth affair with Northland early on. Through the first 20 rallies of the first set and the score sitting at 12 to 11 in favor of NCU, the lead had been exchanged between one another seen times. From that point in the set on, the Rams put together two runs that were instrumental in gaining seperation from NC.
Jaselyn Anderson (Farmington, MN, Christian Life Academy) was impactful in making this happen, recording multiple kills along with a block during those runs. The Rams secured mometnum early on with a 25 to 16 first set victory.
The second set started off with a much different story, but ended with a similar result. Only two ties were recorded during the set when it was 4 to 4 and 5 to 5. After those ties, the Rams held the advantage the rest of the way. Back-to-back kills by
Andrea Wollman (Menno, SD, Freeman Academy) allowed the blue and gold to jump out to an eight to five lead. Despite a late surge by the Lumberjills towards the end of the set, the Rams built a large enough lead by then to edge out Northland in set two 25 to 20.
The third set would turn into the final one, as the Rams put the Lumberjills away 25 to 18. With the score at 6 all and
Hallie Fuglestad (Maple Grove, MN, Maple Grove Senior High School) at the service line, the Rams sparked at 7-point run that fueled their way to taking a strong and commanding lead. Northland then responded well, cutting the Rams' lead down to just three after the run.
Emily DiGiorgio (Ironwood, MI, Luther L. Wright High School) chipped in two timely kills that allowed North Central to maintain its lead at the midway point. With Northland trailing closely until the final few rallies, the Rams took advantage of critical errors made by the opposition and put more distance on the scoreboard. This was enough to give the Rams the third set and come away with the match.
Key Performers
The Rams hit an impressive .348 as a team while holding the LumberJills to a .135 percentage. North Central committed just six total hitting errors and added five blocks in the win.
Looking Ahead
Heading into their next matchup with plenty of momentum from tonight's landslide victory, North Central volleyball will officially wrap up their 2021 spring season this coming Saturday when they face the sixth seeded Vikings in the
UMAC consolation championship. First service is slated for a 5:00 p.m. start. To view Bethany Lutheran's COVID-19 policy on fan attendance for the upcoming game, please click
here. Fans are encouraged to stay posted to official Rams social media (
Facebook,
Instagram, and
Twitter) for game information on the upcoming game, such as live video and statistics.
