Jayden Julian became the 17th player in Norse history to reach 1,000 kills with 11 kills on the day as the Northern Kentucky University volleyball team fell to Horizon League opponent UIC 3-1 Saturday.
Tristen Simpson led the Norse (5-9, 0-2 Horizon) with 12 kills and Keely Creamer added eight kills along with four blocks. Mel Stewart and Lauren Hurley held down the defense with 12 and 11 digs, respectively. The Norse were unable to match the offensive prowess of UIC (8-7, 2-0 Horizon) led by Stephenee Yancy with 26 kills on the match, hitting .629 to lead the team.
The Norse pulled away late in Set 1 with an 18-13 lead. The Flames battled back closing the gap to a final of 25-21. The four service aces were the final advantage in this set for the Norse.
Set 2 was a different story, as the Flames broke out on a 9-1 run to lead 11-4. The Norse chipped away at the lead, with Creamer going 3-for-3 in the set and Simpson adding three kills, but were never able to overcome the deficit, losing the game 25-18.
The third set was a back-and-forth struggle, with the teams going back-and-forth to a tie at 15. The Norse had a 4-1 run to take the lead, but back-to-back blocks from Casey Harris, who finished with seven on the day, slowed the Norse down. The Flames were able to finish the set strong, picking up the final three points to win, 25-23.
Set 4 opened on a 3-0 run by UIC before the Flames opened up a five-point lead at 8-3. The Norse chipped their way back into the set until a 5-1 run, keyed by a Julian service ace and a block by Creamer and Taylor Snyder, tied the set at 22. A service ace from Allie O’Reilly and a block by the Flames provide to be the difference as UIC took the match with a 26-24 set victory.
The Norse hit the road next weekend for more Horizion League action, taking on Green Bay and Milwaukee. Saturday’s match at Milwaukee is set for an ESPN3 broadcast.
NKU returns home on Oct. 9, hosting Youngstown State to begin a three-match home stand. First serve from Regents Hall is set for 7 p.m., with the action carried live on ESPN3.
Shafer, Newton lead Norse women to win
Sophomore Morgan Shafer and junior Katelyn Newton found the back of the net on Saturday night to lead the Northern Kentucky women’s soccer team to a 2-0 shutout victory over Horizon League foe UIC at NKU Soccer Stadium.
The win hands the Norse a 2-0 record in Horizon League play as they improve to 6-2 on the season. UIC falls to 2-7-1 overall and 0-1 in the League.
Junior goalkeeper Brooke Schocker picked up four saves en route to posting her second shutout of the season and sixth of her career.
NKU’s pair of goals were split between the first and second half when the Norse capitalized on a set piece for each goal.
Shafer struck first when she scored on a double assist from Maria Silbersack and Jessica Frey in the 12th minute. Silbersack took a direct free kick from the far left wing and found Frey who dished it to Silbersack for the goal.
The 1-0 advantage stuck until the 85th minute of action when Newton fired a shot attempt off a set piece just outside the box following a UIC yellow card. The shot sailed over UIC goalkeeper Kelly Fritz who posted five total saves on the night.
Northern Kentucky edged the Flames in shot attempts with 15 to UIC’s nine and 7-4 in shots on goal. Frey and sophomore Macy Hamblin were tied with a game-high four shots. Three of Frey’s shots were on goal.
The Norse return to action on Monday, Sept. 28, when they travel to Robert Morris for a 1 p.m. kickoff. The match will serve as the final nonconference tilt of the season and kicks off a three-game road swing for the Norse.
NKU men battle to draw
The Northern Kentucky University men’s soccer team (4-3-1, 1-0-1 Horizon League) battled Detroit (3-2-4, 0-0-2 Horizon League) to a 1-1 (2OT) draw in a League tilt on Saturday. It was the second double-overtime match in five days for the Norse.
“Overall we battled hard and we battled for a win,” Norse head coach John Basalyga said. “At times we did not play well. Detroit did a good job of disrupting what we were trying to do in the first half but we were able to make adjustments at the break that helped take the pressure off our back line. Detroit was unlucky in a few situations and had their chances, while at the same time we had our chances. In the end we battled and got the tie.”
Northern Kentucky struck first in the opening frame when Johannes Jansen found the net unassisted in the 33rd minute. Detroit goalkeeper Nathan Steinwashcer misplayed a ball headed by another Titan into the box, Jansen collected the ball then finished to the right of an open net to give the Norse a 1-0 advantage.
In the second half, Jonathan Bohlman netted the equalizer for Detroit in the 71st minute. Detroit’s Jacob Prud’Homme took a shot that was initially saved by Norse goalkeeper A.J. Fleak, but Bohlman was there for the put-back to knot the game at 1-1.
In the first overtime frame, Detroit took the only shot. The Titans Spiro Pliakos fired away but the Norse defense was able to get the block and keep Detroit at bay. Moving to the second overtime it was Detroit again that took the only shot, with Don Nakashima booting one wide.
The Norse finished the match taking six shots with three on goal, while taking one corner kick. Jansen led Northern Kentucky in shots, taking five with two of them on goal. Alwin Komolong took one shot, also placing it on goal. Fleak (4-3-1) recorded 10 saves on 26 shots faced in 110 minutes of work.
Detroit finished the match taking 28 shots with 11 on goal and 16 corner kicks. Steinwascher (2-2-4) finished the match with two saves on six shots faced.
The Norse return to the pitch for their home opener on Wednesday facing Horizon League foe Belmont with kickoff slated for 7 p.m. at the NKU Soccer Stadium.
From NKU Athletics