NKU men’s soccer blanks Evansville, 3-0; Thomas More volleyball jumps to No. 14 in national poll

NKyTribune staff

Alex Willis, Connor Probert and Calvin Murphy each netted goals Tuesday night as the Northern Kentucky University men’s soccer team bounced back from its first loss of the season with a 3-0 victory over visiting Evansville.

Alex Greive picked up a career-high three assists for NKU, which improved to 5-1. The Norse jumped out to a 1-0 advantage in the 24th minute when Probert slipped a shot past the goalie off an assist from Greive.

NKU increased its lead to 2-0 at the 49:37 mark on Willis’ seventh goal of the season. Greive and Felix Komolong each earned assists on the goal by Willis. Murphy sealed the victory in the 84th minute by tapping in a close-range shot off assists from Greive and Tom Suchecki.

Norse goalies Jim Barkei and Ed Harvey combined for the shutout with two saves. NKU had suffered a 2-1 overtime loss to Wright State on Saturday in the Horizon League opener.

Evansville dropped to 1-3-2 on the season. The Purple Aces, members of the Missouri Valley Conference, were coming off a 1-0 upset of No. 24 Grand Canyon on Fright night.

Prior to Greive’s performance on Tuesday night, Cian McDonald was the last NKU player to collect three assists in a match. McDonald assisted three goals on Sept. 9, 2011, during a 12-0 win against Kentucky Wesleyan at the NKU Soccer Stadium.

NKU hits the road this weekend to meet Green Bay at 8 p.m. Saturday in a Horizon League showdown.

THOMAS MORE VOLLEYBALL MOVES UP IN NATIONAL POLL: The Thomas More College volleyball team has jumped from No. 23 to No. 14 in the latest NCAA Division III national poll. The Saints are 8-0 and play host to Hanover at 7 p.m. Wednesday in the Connor Convocation Center.

Calvin (Mich.) is ranked No. 1 nationally, followed by Colorado College, Claremont-Mudd-Scripps (Calif.), Wittenberg, and Johnson & Wales (R.I.) to round out the top five in the Division III poll.

In addition, the American Collegiate Athletic Association honored Thomas More volleyball standouts Julia Popova and Jessica Ginn on Tuesday. Popova was named Offensive Player of the Week, while Ginn received Defensive Player of the Week honors.

Popova, a freshman middle/right-side hitter from Sophia, Bulgaria, and a graduate of Beechwood High School, led the Saints to a 4-0 record at the weekend Bluffton Spiketacular. She topped the team in hitting (.384 percentage) while adding 42 kills and nine blocks. In Thomas More’s sweep over No. 18 Ohio Northern, Popova collected a match-high 14 kills and five blocks.

Ginn, a sophomore defensive specialist from Cincinnati Seton High School, tallied a team-high 77 digs in the four matches, including 18 in the win over Ohio Northern.

TMC MEN’S SOCCER UPSETS OTTERBEIN: Pierce Turner netted a goal in the first half as the Thomas More men’s soccer team pulled off a 1-0 upset of No. 11 Otterbein on Tuesday night in Westerville, Ohio.

Goalkeeper Jeff Paulin collected the shutout and recorded two saves for Thomas More, which improved to 3-1-1. Turner found the back of the net at the 43:27 mark off a rebound header for the only goal of the contest. Otterbein, which was ranked No. 11 in the United Soccer Coaches preseason poll, dropped to 2-1 with the loss.

Thomas More plays at Anderson at 7:15 p.m. Wednesday.

(Information compiled from NKU Athletics Communications, Thomas More College and staff reports)