After two tight GPAC losses to Midland and Concordia, the Northwestern Red Raider volleyball team is back on their winning streak. With only five losses on the season, the Red Raiders are definitely a tough team to defeat. Their conference record now stands at 10-2.
Their most recent match was played at the Bultman Center where they hosted the Mount Marty Lancers from Yankton, South Dakota. The Red Raiders dominated the volleyball match, with hitting stats doubling that of the Lancers.
Senior hitter Karlie Schut hit double figures, which included a match high of 15 kills along with six digs. Freshman hitter Lauryn Hilger added another seven kills and senior hitter Caitlyn Van Es contributed six kills and six blocks of her own.
The Red Raiders defeated the Lancers in three sets: 25-15, 25-18 and 25-13.
Junior defensive specialists Jillian Estes, Autumn Pluim and Brooke Van Gorp defended extremely well. Pluim’s serving performance tied her own season high with three aces. Van Gorp recorded seven digsw, which led the defending row for the Red Raiders.
“Our confidence and performance are at a high right now,” Estes said. “Last night against the Mount Marty Lancers, as well as the games prior, show that we are meshing very well as a unit. It could not have happened at a better time with the season coming to an end as we prepare for the GPAC tournament.”
Estes was just awarded the GPAC Defensive Player-of-the-Week honors Oct. 20.
The Red Raiders will be hosting Doane College, a GPAC opponent, on Friday Oct. 23 for Senior Night. The JV match-up will begin at 6 p.m., followed by the varsity showdown at 7:30 p.m.
