Contact: Nicholas Osterloo, Assistant Sports Information Director, 630-637-5324

NAPERVILLE, Ill. (Sept. 19, 2023) - Facing Augustana College for the first time since last season's College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin Tournament match, the North Central College women's volleyball team outlasted the Vikings in an exciting back-and-forth five-set victory on Tuesday night in Gregory Arena.

Back-to-back kills from Amber Vande Hei and Maddi Barickman followed by an ace from  Taylor O'Malley put the Cardinal ahead 3-0 to start the first set. Lauren Benson and Abbi Barickman denied a Viking attack at the net to push the lead to five, 10-5. A five-point swing by Augustana evened the contest at 14. Both teams battled to a 23-23 tie before the Vikings scored the set's final two points for a 25-23 win.

Looking to bounce back in the second set, a kill from Benson gave North Central an early 5-2 advantage. An 8-1 run for the Cardinals, sparked by Kenda Battle's first kill of the match, put North Central on top, 14-7. The Cardinals staved off a Viking comeback attempt by scoring seven of the final 10 points in the set to earn a 25-18 victory in set two.

Both teams traded points early on in a pivotal third set. Vande Hei's second kill of the set knotted things at 10-10. A 5-1 run capped off by a kill from Katie Little gave the Cardinals an 18-16 edge. Augustana took a 23-21 lead but North Central rallied off the final four points of the set to win 25-23 and take a 2-1 lead for the match.

North Central jumped out to a 4-1 advantage before the Vikings took an 11-6 lead. A quick 5-1 rally brought the Cardinals within two, 18-16 but Augustana held on to force a final fifth set. 

Needing just 15 points to win the match, a kill from M. Barickman gave North Central a 5-1 edge early on. Staying in control, A. Barickman delivered an ace to bring the Cardinal lead to five, 9-4. Riley Clark and Little took advantage of their opportunities and put North Central ahead 12-7 before M. Barickman earned her fifth kill of the night to secure the 15-10 win in the set and a 3-2 victory for the match.

Four Cardinals tallied double-digit kills as A. Barickman recorded 17 to pace the team. M. Barickman dished out a career-high 54 assists on the night while also tying her career-best with five kills. O'Malley led the team with 20 digs and two aces. Emily Schipper and Jaden Julius each totaled 23 kills to lead Augustana.

North Central competes in the UW-Stevens Point Invitational this weekend as they face Simpson College before taking on back-to-back ranked opponents in No. 20 UW-Stevens Point and No. 3 UW-Oshkosh before wrapping up the event with Lakeland University. Links to the full tournament schedule and ticket prices, click HERE.

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