NU Drops Five-Set Match to LSU

8/26/2017 3:36:00 PM | Women's Volleyball

Box Score

TAMPA, Fla. — The Wildcats dropped their first match on Saturday, falling to LSU, 3-2, in a five-set thriller at The Corral at the Sun Dome Arena.

Senior Gabrielle Hazen led Northwestern (1-1) with her .474 hitting percentage (11 kills, 2 errors, 19 attacks). She also tied her career-high with eight total blocks.

Northwestern led the match in hitting percentage (.231) and service aces (6).

The #B1GCats found themselves in a hole early in the first set, needing to be scrappy to eliminate the Tigers' advantage. Northwestern tied up the first set at nine points apiece and took control of the set.

NU outscored LSU 14 to seven to push the game to 24-16, and Northwestern eventually won their first set, 25-18.

Northwestern picked up its second-straight set victory in set number two, on the backs of Symone Abbott's potent play. The Northville, Michigan, native hit at a .385 clip, registering seven kills on 13 attacks.

Leading two sets to none entering the third set, LSU was able to edge out Northwestern 25 points to 19. Gabrielle Hazen had a pair of block assists in the set defeat.

In the fourth set, NU was able to possess a 21-15 advantage, with the end of the match in the Wildcats' sights. A late Tiger surge put LSU over the top, and they took the fourth set, 25-23, to even up the competition at two sets apiece.

In the fifth set, the shortened format ramped up the intensity of the competition. Both evenly-matched teams rallied back-and-forth for the advantage, but LSU finished with a 15-13 win.

In the competition, senior Symone Abbott notched her 1,247th career kill, moving her past Alison Krumbein for 12th place at Northwestern. She needs 11 more blocks to pass Carmen Burbach to move into 11th place. Abbott's 24 kills in the competition was only two shy of her career-best (26, vs. Wisconsin, Nov. 12, 2016).

This was only LSU's second win against Northwestern in the six-match comeptition history between the two squads. It is the Tigers' first win against Northwestern since September 1989.

The Wildcats will play Arkansas-Pine Bluff at 4 p.m. CT to finish their three-match stay at the USF Invitational.