FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Clark Teuscher, Sports Information Director, 630-637-5302
  
Box Score

Oct. 26, 2010 - The North Central College volleyball team was beaten, but not outhustled on Senior Night Tuesday, putting on a gutsy performance against a perennial power before ultimately succumbing, 3-1, to 10th-ranked Carthage College at Gregory Arena.

A team that posted two 3-0 victories over the Cardinals last season, Carthage (23-7, 6-1 College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin) entered the match with something to prove after losing its first CCIW match since 2003 to Millikin University on Oct. 19. The Lady Reds came out of their corner swinging, dealing the hosts a 25-13 defeat in the first set.

Undeterred, North Central (12-18, 2-5 CCIW) rallied and took an early lead in the second set, benefiting from strong defense and solid front-line play by Jenae Harner. The Cardinals owned a 17-13 advantage when Carthage staged a 4-0 rally, prompting a North Central timeout.

After the break, the teams traded points until the Cardinals got two straight on the serve of Crystal Wright. The hosts stayed in front and finished off the 25-22 win with a kill by Harner.

North Central hung tough in the third set before a pair of sustained rallies by the Lady Reds allowed the guests to pull away and post a 25-12 victory. The fourth set was tied, 17-17, before a 7-1 Carthage run enabled the Lady Reds to close out the match, 25-20.

Wright finished with a team-high 11 kills for North Central and shared the team lead in digs with Sarah Eggert, as each had 20. #Kristina Antle finished with 15 digs, while Ryan Lally added 11 to go with 43 assists.

North Central participates in the Benedictine University Invitational on Friday and Saturday. Play is scheduled to begin at 5 p.m. on Friday and noon on Saturday.