'Cats Kick Off Final Road Trip at Michigan State

EAST LANSING, Mich. - Northwestern volleyball hits the road for the first half of a road swing on Wednesday, taking on the Michigan State Spartans in East Lansing, Mich. First serve between the 'Cats (5-21, 3-15 B1G) and the Spartans (12-17, 5-13 B1G) is scheduled for 5 p.m. CT on B1G+.

STORYLINES:

Over the last three weeks, Rylen Reid has reached double-digits in kills three times - a feat she had achieved just once in her career prior to this month. Last time out, she totaled 19 kills in a team-leading effort against Rutgers, good for her third match at the top of the 'Cats' attack this month. Prior to this year, the outside hitter had never logged more than 18 kills in a season, and now her 177 kills ranks third on the 'Cats' roster.
Sophia Summers matched a career high with nine kills on Saturday against Rutgers - her first time recording that many since August 31 against Pacific. Summers reached that total on team-high .692 attack percentage, which was her highest since October 13 at Wisconsin and also stands as her fifth match this season with an attack percentage better than .500.
Lauren Carter tied her career high with 18 assists on Saturday, good for her sixth straight match in double-digits and her 13th of the season. Before this year, Carter had tallied ten or more assists just twice in her career.

THE MATCH-UP:

Michigan State holds a 43-38 edge in the all-time series against Northwestern after the two teams split last year's home-and-home matchups. The 'Cats won in East Lansing in five sets on
Oct. 7 after the Spartans took a five-set victory in Evanston a week earlier. With those matches counted, Northwestern and Michigan State are an even 4-4 over their last eight meetings, dating back to the 2018 season.

The Spartans head into Wednesday's match 5-13 in conference play after winning four of their last five Big Ten matches. Michigan State swept Maryland in East Lansing on Saturday after falling in straight sets to No. 13 Oregon on Thursday, and have now beaten Maryland, Iowa, Michigan, Rutgers and No. 16 USC over the last month. Following play against the 'Cats, Michigan State will close out their season on the road at No. 7 Wisconsin on Saturday.

UP NEXT:

Northwestern will wrap up their 2024 campaign on Friday evening in Ann Arbor, taking on the Michigan Wolverines in the season finale. First serve is scheduled for 6 p.m. CT on B1G+.

'Cats Kick Off Final Road Trip at Michigan State

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Players Mentioned

Lauren Carter

Rylen Reid

Sophia Summers

Northwestern University Athletics