Contact: Nicholas Osterloo, Assistant Sports Information Director, 630-637-5324
WAUKESHA, Wis. (Sept. 27, 2023) - Improving to 2-1 in College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin play, the North Central College women's volleyball team hit .318 on the match to propel them to a 3-1 victory over Carroll University on Wednesday night at Van Male Fieldhouse.
Answering the Pioneers' 8-1 run to open the first set, the Cardinals scored six straight points to bring themselves within one. The teams traded points until a kill from Lauren Benson gave North Central their first lead of the set, 16-15. A block from Benson and Abbi Barickman set the score at 21-16 before a kill from Riley Clark clinched the first set win, 25-19.
Early in set two, back-to-back kills from Clark put North Central on top 8-5. Carroll responded to take a 16-14 advantage. Kills from Clark and Katie Little knotted the contest at 17-17. An 8-3 rally from the Cardinals, capped off by a Benson block to secure the second set, gave North Central a 15-20 victory.
Set three saw a kill from Clark, setup by Aidan Brown, tie the contest at three. An ace from the Pioneers gave them a slight 11-8 advantage before a block by Clark and Benson evened the set at 13-13. Maddi Barickman delivered an ace to give the Cardinals their first lead of the set. With the score tied at 23, Benson sent home a kill to give North Central a one-point lead. The teams went back-and-forth until Carroll scored the final two points of the set to take a 30-28 win and extend the match.
Benson's first kill of the fourth set gave the Cardinals a 4-2 edge. Again the teams traded points as a kill from Abbi Barickman gave North Central a 12-11 lead. A 7-3 run pushed the Cardinals lead to five, 20-15. Carroll went on a 5-0 run of their own to tie the set at 20. Down to their last point, Benson stepped up with a kill to even the set at 24-24. Following each team earning a point, a Pioneer error and a kill from Clark sealed the 3-1 victory for North Central.
Three Cardinals tallied double-digit kills as A. Barickman led the way with 15 while Clark tallied 11 and Benson recorded 10. M. Barickman dished out 38 assists over the four sets and led the team with two aces. Benson racked up four block assists and a solo block while Brown led the team with 18 digs.
North Central has the weekend off before hosting Illinois Wesleyan University on Tuesday night inside Gregory Arena. That match is set to begin at 7 p.m. The Cardinals won in five sets a season ago in Bloomington.
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