Game Time... Northwestern travles to Sioux City this evening to take on Briar Cliff in a GPAC volleyball showdown. The Red Raiders are 18-7 overall, 6-3 in the GPAC, and moved up to 18th in this week's NAIA rating. Briar Cliff is also 18-7 overall but are tied for second in the GPAC with an 8-2 mark. The JV game starts at 6:00 pm and will be followed by the varsity at 7:30 pm.
Last Time Out... The Red Raiders earned a 3-0 victory in their last match on Oct. 10 against Mount Marty. Individual game scores were 30-12, 30-12 and 30-16. Northwestern hit .316 for the match and were led by Megan Meyer who recorded 17 kills and hit .467. Hillary Hanno totaled 10 kills and .474 for the match while Randa Hulstein had seven kills and four blocks. Rachel Gosselink served up 45 assists and recorded one ace serve. Janna Bloemendaal and Delainye Hardersen combined for 14 digs and went a perfect 30/30 from the service line.
Briar Cliff split a pair of GPAC matches last week as they defeated Midland Lutheran (3-0) but lost to Dordt last Friday, 3-1. Individual game scores were 30-20, 25-30, 30-25 and 31-29. The Chargers led, 26-20, in game four and seemed destined to push the Defenders to a decisive game five but Dordt rallied and won in extra time. The Chargers hit just .143 for the match and totaled 23 hitting and six serving errors. They were led by Alex Anstine who had 16 kills and Nicole Hogeveen added 14 in the loss.
Scouting Report... The Chargers rank in the middle of the GPAC in several offensive categories, including hitting percentage, kills and blocks. BCU, however, leads the GPAC in digs, averaging 24.4 per contest. They are led by Micaela Borer who is averaging 3.3 kills per game and is 10th in the GPAC with a .317 hitting efficiency. Nicole Hoogeveen and Alex Anstine average 2.9 and 2.8 kills, respectively. Anstine and Kate Boettcher are both among the league leaders in digs, averaging 5.9 and 6.8 digs per contest. Setter Nicolle Donovan runs the offense and averages 9.2 assists per game.
Red Raider Notes... Northwestern ranks third in the GPAC in both hitting percentage (.227) and kills (14.9). Individually, Hillary Hanno is sixth with a .337 attack percentage and ranks third on the team with 2.9 kills per game. Bobbie jean Rich and Megan Meyer lead the team averaging 3.0 kills per game. Randa Hulstein ranks 10th in the GPAC with 1.1 blocks per game and is averaging 2.4 kills per game. Kaitlin Beaver is averaging 2.7 kills and 2.3 digs per game while leading the team with 32 ace serves. Rachel Gosselink is second in the league with 12.84 assists per game and is second on the team with 28 ace serves. Janna Bloemendaal (3.2 digs) and Karrisa Davelaar (2.6 digs) patrol the backrow. Bloemendaal is serving 94% with 12 aces while Delainye Hardersen serves 95% with 24 aces.
Next up... Northwestern continues league play with two more road games this weekend. They play league-leader Morningside on Friday night which is followed by a Saturday game against Doane. NWC returns home on Tuesday, Oct. 23 when they host USF at 7:30 p.m.
2007 media guide
