Contact: Drew Sauer, Assistant Sports Information Director, 630-637-5324

Box Score

PELLA, Iowa (Sept. 20, 2019) – Snapping a four-match losing streak, the North Central College women's volleyball team returned to the win column with a 3-0 shutout win over MacMurray College on Friday in the opener of the Central College Invitational, including a thrilling come-from-behind third-set victory.

The Cardinals came out with a vengeance in the opening set, scoring six straight points to open up a 13-6 lead midway through the set.  A kill from Reagan Raymer sparked the Cardinal rally, while Raymer also recorded a pair of service aces and Carson Smalley also tallied a kill.

North Central (5-9) rolled from that point forward before Sarah Geosling capped the opening set with a kill off an assist from Katelynn Kuehl to seal a 25-14 win.

Holding a 12-10 advantage in set number two, the Cardinals scored seven of the next nine points to extend the lead 19-12, as kills from Geosling, Emmie Naal and Kimberly Epker highlighted the run.

Fighting off a late MacMurray (5-5) comeback attempt late, Smalley delivered the set-winning kill off a pass from Raymer to clinch the second set 25-22 and take a 2-0 lead in the match.

After a slow start to the third set saw North Central facing a 18-12 deficit, the Cardinal offense caught fire at just the right time as three-straight kills from Smalley and another from Geosling pulled North Central to within two and forcing a MacMurray timeout.

Still down by two, 19-17, a MacMurray service error followed by a kill from Kaylee Allensworth and two more MacMurary errors quickly gave North Central a 21-19 lead.

Two-straight MacMurray points tied the score at 21 all, before another kill from Allensworth, a block from Geosling and Jackie Gannon and yet another kill from Geosling gave the Cardinals a crucial 24-23 advantage late.

After MacMurray staved off two set points, Geosling capped a fantastic evening with her 10^th kill of the contest, a match-winner off an assist from Raymer to take the third set 25-23.

The Cardinal offense finished the match hitting .270 as a team, the second-highest percentage of the season thus far.  Smalley led all players in kills, eclipsing double digits for the first time in her young career with 13, while Geosling hit .412 on the match, killing 10 of 17 attempts.

Raymer also finished in double figures with 10 kills and also led the team with 19 assists and three service aces.  Defensively, Lexi Barry tallied nine digs while Anna Cvetkovic added seven.

Returning to P.H. Kuyper Gymnasium on Saturday, Sept. 21, North Central wraps up play at the Central Invite, taking on Bethel University (Minnesota) at 11 a.m., followed by Wartburg College (Iowa) at 3 p.m.

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