Northwestern University Athletics
Northwestern Celebrates The Seniors Wednesday Night
11/25/2014 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
| Northwestern (16-13, 6-12 B1G) vs. No. 4 Penn State (28-3, 16-2 B1G) |
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| Date | Time | November 26 | 7:00 p.m. |
| Location | Welsh-Ryan Arena | Evanston, Ill. |
| Live Stats | GameTracker |
| Watch Live | BTN Plus on BTN2GO |
| Social Media | @NUVball  | Northwestern Volleyball  | @nu_volleyball  |
| Notes (PDF) | Northwestern | Penn State |
EVANSTON, Ill. -- Northwestern will celebrate the careers of its five graduating seniors Wednesday night when it host the fourth-ranked Penn State Nittany Lions in the final home match of the season at Welsh-Ryan Arena. The first serve between the 'Cats and the defending national champions is set for 7 p.m.
Opening Serve
Northwestern will conclude its 38th regular season of intercollegiate volleyball when it hosts fourth-ranked Penn State in the penultimate regular season match on Wednesday night in a pre-Thanksgiving showdown. The Wildcats will hit the road on Saturday on Saturday, Nov. 29 in their first-ever trip to College Park, Md., home of the Maryland Terrapins.
Thank you, Seniors
Five Wildcats will celebrate Senior Night at Welsh-Ryan Arena Wednesday. Yewande Akanbi, Maggie Burnham, Katie Dutchman, Monica McGreal and Savannah Paffen have combined to play in 429 matches at Northwestern with 1,502 sets between them entering the week. The group has been part of at least 16 wins each of the past four seasons, with the opportunity to add on this week. Though she took a redshirt, Dutchman was also a member of the 2010 Wildcats squad that won 20 matches and advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament. A sixth member of the senior class, Caroline Niedospial, has one season of eligibility remaining after taking a medical redshirt in 2012.
Nearly-Perfect Paffen
Senior Savannah Paffen put away a season-high 12 kills against Iowa last time out. Paffen was blanced with 4.0 kills per set and nearly perfect with just two errors in 14 total attempts. The Mountain View, Calif, native hit at a career-high clip of .714, a number that's tied for the fourth-best mark in Big Ten this season (min. 12 kills).
Top-Ten Takedown
In defeating No. 9 Illinois on Nov. 5, the Wildcats slayed their first top-10 opponent since upsetting the second-ranked Nebraska Cornhuskers in four sets on Nov. 26, 2011. The night before playing in Evanston, the Huskers had claimed their first-ever Big Ten Championship. The Ilini were the second nationally ranked team to fall to the `Cats this season. Northwestern beat No. 18 Minnesota in straight sets in Evanston on Oct. 5.
Tashima The Triple Threat
Freshman Taylor Tashima notched her second career triple-double last week on Nov. 12 when she tallied 12 kills, 17 assists and 15 digs in the Wildcats matchup at Minnesota. The Wilmette, Ill. native also set a career-high hitting percentage (.706). Tashima is tied for the B1G lead with two triple-doubles and became the second Big Ten player to record a triple-double when she put up 10 kills, 23 assists and 11 digs against No. 9 Illinois on Nov. 5. The newcomer narrowly missed the feat twice previously this season with nine kills, 28 assists and a career-high 20 digs against Purdue on Oct. 24 and a career-high 14 kills, 26 assists and nine digs against Indiana on Oct. 25. Tashima is tied for third in the Big Ten and leads all freshmen with 12 double-doubles. Minnesota's Sarah Wilhite (vs. Ohio State, Sept. 24) owns the league's first triple-double this season, while Purdue's Val Nichol also has two.
Looking Ahead Northwestern, which remains eligible for selection to the NCAA Tournament with a record above .500 at 16-13, heads to College Park, Md. to wrap up the regular season on Saturday, Nov. 29. The Wildcats toppled the Terps in five sets during the opening weekend of Big Ten play at Welsh-Ryan Arena on Sept. 27.
For more notes and information, please download the PDFs near the top of the page.
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