Eastern Michigan Athletics
Eastern Michigan University
2-18,0-8MAC
Northern Illinois
7-12,5-2MAC
Volleyball Battles in Three-Set Setback to Northern Illinois
10/12/2023 8:59:00 PM | Volleyball
The Eagles set to face Huskies once more Friday, Oct. 13
DEKALB, Ill. (EMUEagles.com) – The Eastern Michigan University volleyball team fought valiantly but ultimately fell in three sets on the road to the Huskies of Northern Illinois University, Thursday, Oct. 12, on Victor E. Court.
Callie Minshew (Brandon, Miss./Brandon/Mississippi State) finished with 17 kills on the day to lead the Eagles offense while finishing with a hitting percentage of .258. EMU got nine digs from Hannah Howard (Toledo, Ohio/Saint Ursula Academy) to lead them defensively. Additionally, Olivia Szylar (Itasca, Ill./Lake Park) assisted on 21 kills for a season-high.
How It Happened
SET 1 | The Eagles dropped the first set 25-21 despite a strong showing on the attacking end. Eastern Michigan put together a .419 attack percentage with 16 kills in the set loss.
SET 2 | EMU then lost the second set 30-28 to fall behind in the match two sets to none. The Eagles fell in a tight second set, losing in a stanza that was tied 11 times and had five lead changes.
SET 3 | The Green and White could not win set three and were swept by Northern Illinois. The Eagles fell behind on the first point and never took the lead before falling in the set 25-12.
Match Notes
» Minshew recorded a match-high 17 kills in the loss. It marked just the fifth time this season in which the graduate student earned 17 or more kills in a single match and the 17th contest in which she has hit the double-digit kill mark. The Mississippi State University transfer leads EMU in total kills with 279 as well as in service aces after recording her 20th of the season in the setback.
» Szylar helped on 21 kills on the attacking side for a season-high, topping her previous 10 which she recorded in two different contests, thus far (vs. Chicago State, Sept. 8; at Buffalo, Oct. 6). Additionally, the 21 assists marked the second consecutive match in which the senior recorded double-digit assists after collecting 10 against the Bulls the match before.
» The Green and White battled on an even playing surface as both teams recorded an equal amount of serving aces (2), serving errors (7), and assists (49). It marked just the third time this season in which the Eagles have tied in serving aces with its opponent and just the third time with the same amount of assists.
» The Eagles attack earned 42 kills altogether in the loss which marks the eighth time this season EMU has produced 42 kills or more in a single match.
Up Next
The Green and White will face the Huskies once more Friday, Oct. 13 at 6 p.m CT. The match is scheduled to be streamed on ESPN+ and can always be followed via livestats at emueagles.com/livestats.
