Morris, MN -- The North Central University (NCU) volleyball team hit the road for an away contest against the University of Minnesota Morris (UMM) Cougars. MN-Morris has gotten the better of NCU in recent years as the Rams have not been able to defeat the Cougars. Tonight, North Central struggled in two of the three sets as they committed too many costly errors. The Cougars were able to capitalize and sweep the Rams in 3 sets. 

NCU found themselves trailing early as UMM opened the first set with three straight points. The Rams never led in set one as the Cougars won 25-13. Sydney Carlson (5) and Erica Tormanen (3) recorded all 8 kills for the Rams in the opening set. 

North Central bounced back with a strong start to set two as they led 8-3. However, the Cougars fought back to regain the lead at 18-14. Three straight kills by freshman Erica Tormanen helped pull the Rams to within two points. Later in the set, back-to-back kills by senior captain Hailey Lerfald gave NCU the 25-24 lead and set point. Unfortunately, Morris scored three points to close out the set and take a 2-0 lead. 

The teams went back and forth early in the third set. Then the Cougars were able to go on a pair of 4-point and 5-point runs to break open the set at 18-8. Errors plagued the Rams in the back half of the set and ultimately led to Minnesota Morris winning 25-13 and sweeping NCU three sets to none. Sophomore Sydney Carlson led all Rams with 12 kills and 9 digs.

Looking Ahead:

Up next, North Central hosts Maranatha Baptist University on Saturday, October 19th for a "Dig Pink" event in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness. The game is scheduled for 12:00 PM. 

All fans are encouraged to tune into the official Rams Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter (X) pages for updates on Rams Volleyball and all things NCU Athletics.