NKU and WSU Secure Tournament Titles

The third weekend of non-conference play in volleyball saw all nine Horizon League teams in action in tournaments across the country. Six teams won at least two matches this weekend, with Northern Kentucky and Wright State capturing tournament titles.Cleveland State at Flyer Invitational
Cleveland State def. Eastern Illinois, 3-2 (25-23, 18-25, 25-21, 25-27, 15-10)
Cleveland State def. Baylor, 3-1 (20-25, 31-29, 27-25, 25-20)
Dayton def. Cleveland State, 3-0 (25-16, 25-21, 27-25)

Vikings took two of three at Dayton’s Flyer Invitational. On the opening night of the invitational, Christina Toth led the Vikings with 22 kills as CSU outlasted Eastern Illinois in five sets. On Saturday, CSU rebounded from a one-set deficit to take the final three sets from Baylor. Grace Kauth led the Vikings with 23 kills, while Toth added 17. In the tournament finale, CSU fell to Dayton, Toth again led the Vikings offense, finishing with 15 kills and just one attack error in 27 attempts. She was named to the All-Tournament team.

Green Bay at UND Classic
North Dakota def. Green Bay, 3-2 (25-27, 26-24, 25-18, 27-29, 15-11)
Green Bay def. Jacksonville State, 3-0 (26-24, 25-16, 25-18)
Green Bay def. Drake, 3-1 (25-22, 25-13, 27-29, 25-15)
Green Bay def. South Dakota, 3-1 (20-25, 25-19, 25-21, 25-21)

The Phoenix rebounded from a tough five-set loss in its opening match of the UND Classic to win the final three matches it played. After falling to host North Dakota, GB captured nine of the next 11 sets it played to improve to 7-3 on the year.  Lydia DeWeese and junior Megan Powers were selected to the UND Classic All-Tournament Team. DeWeese posted 59 kills at a stellar .438 hitting percentage over the course of the weekend, both which led the team, while Powers had 46 kills at a .316 clip, including her 300th kill as a Phoenix in the second set.

Milwaukee at Comfort Suites Challenge
Iowa def., Milwaukee, 3-0 (25-23, 25-23, 25-19)
#25 Texas A&M def., Milwaukee, 3-1 (27-25, 18-25, 25-20, 25-17)
Iowa State def., Milwaukee, 3-0 (25-21, 25-21, 25-15)

The Panthers dropped all three of their matches at Iowa’s Comfort Suites Challenge that featured UWM taking on opponents from the Big Ten, Big 12 and the SEC. Maggie Dunbar led UWM with 38 kills on a .342 attack percentage as she was named to the All-Tournament team. Kayla Price had 120 assists to aid the offense, while Myanna Ruiz led the defensive effort with 58 digs.

Northern Kentucky at Dunn Hospitality Tournament
Northern Kentucky def. Western Illinois, 3-1 (23-25, 25-21, 25-22, 25-8)
Northern Kentucky def. Jackson State, 3-1 (25-13, 24-26, 25-16, 25-17)
Northern Kentucky def. Evansville, 3-0 (25-23, 25-20, 27-25)

NKU won all three matches at the Dunn Hospitality Tournament to claim the championship. Keely Creamer and Taylor Snyder were named to the All-Tournament team. Creamer finished the weekend with 39 kills on a .416 hitting percentage while Snyder averaged over 11 assists per set. Jayden Julian and Tristen Simpson aided the Norse offense with 33 and 32 kill respectively. Mel Stewart had 14 blocks on the weekend to pace the defense.

Oakland at LBSU/LMU Mizuno Invitational
Oakland def. Stony Brook, 3-2 (25-17, 24-26, 23-25, 25-16, 18-16)
Long Beach State def. Oakland, 3-1 (25-21, 24-26, 25-17, 25-17)
Loyola Marymount def. Oakland, 3-0 (25-22, 25-18, 25-23)
Oakland def. Central Arkansas, 3-0 (25-21, 26-24, 25-23)

The Golden Grizzlies split their matches at the LBSU/LMU Mizuno Invitational. Cassie Pelloni tallied 20 kills with a .372 hitting percentage, while Melissa Deatsch collected 26 digs and added eight kills as the Oakland volleyball team came back from 14-11 down in the fifth set to defeat Stony Brook in the opening match. Oakland finished the tournament with a convincing 3-0 sweep of Central Arkansas.

UIC at All-American Classic
Butler def. UIC, 3-0 (25-10, 25-23, 25-18)
Cincinnati def. UIC, 3-1 (25-23, 23-25, 25-22, 25-21)
UIC def. Northern Iowa, 3-2 (25-20, 20-25, 21-25, 25-23, 15-9)

The Flames closed the All-American Classic with a come-from-behind five-set win over Northern Iowa. Five UIC players reached at least eight kills in the match, led by Stephenee Yancy with 15. Alyssa Ehrhardt added 12 kills and 15 digs in the win. Yancy finished the weekend with a team-best 32 kills and a team-high nine blocks.

Valparaiso hosted Popcorn Classic
Valparaiso def. Kennesaw State, 3-0 (25-21, 25-21, 25-21)
Valparaiso def. Elon, 3-0 (25-21, 25-18, 25-16)
Valparaiso def. Savannah State, 3-0 (25-13, 25-17, 25-11)
Loyola def. Valparaiso, 3-0 (25-22, 25-18, 25-21)

The Crusaders took home three of their four contests at their Popcorn Classic tournament. Valpo opened the tournament with three straight sweeps to push their record to 9-0, the best start in program history, before falling to Loyola in the tournament finale. Kelsey Berrington and Taylor Graboski represented the Crusaders on the All-Tournament Team. Berrington finished the tournament with 103 assists, while Graboski had 26 kills and a team-best seven blocks.

Wright State hosted Holiday Inn Invitational
Akron def. Wright State, 3-2 (25-27, 25-23, 26-28, 25-10, 15-12)
Wright State def. Saint Francis (Pa.), 3-0 (25-13, 25-13, 25-22)
Wright State def. Akron, 3-1 (25-20, 15-25, 25-23, 25-21)
Wright State def. Saint Francis (Pa.), 3-0 (25-15, 25-22, 25-20)

After dropping its first match at the Holiday Inn Invitational, WSU won its next three to improve its season record to 8-3. Katie Klusman had a team-high 59 kills in the invitational, averaging 4.21 per set, while Megan Hopkins added 47 kills. Marisa Aiello had 37 kills and a team-best .329 attack percentage. Maddie Lohmeier was named one of three most outstanding players of the tournament with 167 assists (11.1 per set) in four matches.

Youngstown State at Country Financial Redbird Classic
Illinois State def. Youngstown State, 3-0 (25-16, 25-16, 25-20)
Youngstown State def. Toledo, 3-1 (27-25, 20-25, 25-17, 25-21)
IUPUI def. Youngstown State, 3-0 (25-21, 25-21, 25-22)

The Penguins won one match at the Country Financial Redbird Classic hosted by Illinois State. In YSU’s 3-1 win over Toledo, Sam Brown, Aly Ryan and Sarah Varcolla all led a balanced YSU attack with 10 kills. Val Jeffery had 42 assists and Nikki Thompson had 21 digs. One match after recording 21 digs, Thompson went over 1,000 career digs in the match versus IUPUI. Jeffery was named to the All-Tournament team after leading  YSU with 96 assists  in 10 sets of play.