Northwestern University Athletics
Women's Volleyball Wins Season Opener, 3-0
8/31/2001 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
Aug. 31, 2001
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. -
The Northwestern volleyball team was victorious in its first match of the 2001 season, defeating East Carolina 3-0 (30-17, 30-25, 30-20) in the opening match of the Deacon Invitational in Winston-Salem, N.C.
The 'Cats (1-0, 0-0 Big Ten) clearly had a height advantage and outblocked the Pirates 30-6. Junior middle blocker Sarah Ballog (Coto de Caza, Calif./Santa Margarita) and sophomore middle blocker Erika Lange (Orland Park, Ill./Carl Sandburg) each posted eight blocks for NU.
As a team, Northwestern posted a .330 attack percentage, junior outside hitter Molly Kamp (Stevensville, Mich./Lakeshore) led the way with 16 kills on 29 attempts. Junior Kelli Meyer (Madison, Wisc./Edgewood) got the start at outside hitter after two years as starting setter and hit .294 with four service aces. Junior outside hitter Cassie McKnight (San Marcos, Calif./San Marcos) chipped in three service aces, including two back-to-back in the third game to seal the Pirates' fate.
True freshman setter Drew Robertson (Long Beach, Calif./Long Beach Poly) was impressive in her first collegiate match, with 29 assists and a game-high eight digs. Sophomore Brandy Stohl (Colona, Ill./J.D. Darnall) and redshirt freshman Leah Delcourt (Rock Island, Ill/Rock Island) also played in their first match for the Wildcats.
East Carolina (0-1, 0-0 C-USA) rarely held a lead in any game, as Northwestern took advantage of ECU's season-opener jitters and forced several errors early in the match. The use of rally scoring for the first time in NCAA competition proved to work in NU's favor, providing a quick way for the team to pull away in each of the three games.
Northwestern takes on Mississippi State at 11 a.m. EST and Wake Forest at 7 p.m. EST in Saturday's Deacon Invitational action.
