Northwestern Volleyball Opens Big Ten Play on the Road

EVANSTON, Ill. – After finishing non-conference play with an 11-1 record, the Northwestern volleyball team hits the road for a pair of matches this weekend to begin Big Ten Conference play. The Wildcats travel to face No. 6 Wisconsin at 7 p.m. CT on Friday, Sept. 23 in the league opener before making the drive to battle Illinois at 7 p.m. CT on Saturday, Sept. 24. Both matches will air on B1G+.
 
For the second week in a row, Northwestern is receiving votes in the AVCA Coaches Poll. The Wildcats are knocking on the door of being ranked inside the poll's top-25 for the first time since earning the No. 24 spot in Week 6 of 2014. NU's 11-1 start to the season is its best through the first 12 matches since 2012 (11-1).
 
Last weekend the Wildcats swept the annual Chicago Cup, defeating DePaul (3-1), UIC (3-0) and Loyola Chicago (3-2). Senior Temi Thomas-Ailara grabbed Big Ten Player of the Week honors for the first time in her career by logging 4.75 k/s, while hitting .311 with eight blocks. She posted a double-double against DePaul with 19 kills and 12 digs and finished the weekend against Loyola Chicago with a season-high 24 kills. Fifth year Hanna Lesiak and Thomas-Ailara have both claimed player of the week awards this season, marking the first time Northwestern has claimed two such awards in the same year since 2003.
 
Junior Alexa Rousseau posted the Big Ten's first triple-double this season, and averaged a team-best 10.33 a/s (124 assists), as she claimed Big Ten Setter of the Week recognition. She notched her second career triple-double against DePaul by recording a career-high 11 kills, 11 digs and 44 assists. She finished the weekend with a season-high 46 assists against Loyola Chicago.
 
Lesiak is averaging career bests in k/s (2.17), hitting percentage (.255) and d/s (2.21) and is second on the team in kills per set. First-year Kathryn Randorf is third on the team posting 2.50 k/s. Defensively, fifth-year Megan Miller is averaging 3.84 d/s. She recorded her 1,000th career dig earlier this season against Cal Poly.
 
'Cat Facts

• Northwestern's 11-1 start this season is its best through the first 12 matches of a season since 2012 (11-1).
• Thomas-Ailara ranks second in the Big Ten in points per set (4.59), fourth in kills per set (3.94) and ninth in service aces (38). She also has the second-most career kills (1,208) by an active Big Ten student-athlete.
• Rousseau places eighth in total assists (1,267) and 10th in assists per set (9.52).
• Miller's 1,097 career digs is fourth-most by an active Big Ten student-athlete.
• Northwestern last won its Big Ten road opener in 2015, downing Rutgers 3-0.

Wisconsin holds a 57-29 lead in the all-time series and have won 11 straight meetings. Last season the Badgers defeated NU 3-0 on Nov. 5 in Evanston and 3-1 on Nov. 14 in Madison before winning the national championship. Ranked No. 6 in the AVCA Poll, Wisconsin is 6-2 this year and swept Rhode Island 3-0 on Sunday.
 
Illinois is 63-30 all-time against the Wildcats and won both matches (3-2, 3-1) last season. Northwestern defeated the then-No. 24 Fighting Illini 3-1 on Nov. 30, 2019, for its last win in the series. Illinois has won 12 of the last 13 meetings. This season, the Illini are receiving votes in the AVCA Coaches Poll and are 5-5 after dropping a pair of matches last weekend to Illinois State (3-2) and No. 19 Marquette (3-2).

Following Big Ten opening weekend, Northwestern travels to Minnesota for its first nationally televised match of the season which will air on BTN at 8 p.m. CT on Wednesday, Sept. 28.