EVANSTON, Ill. - Northwestern volleyball (4-3) opened the 2026 Northwestern Invitational in dominant fashion on Friday evening, sweeping Virginia Tech (3-3) inside Welsh-Ryan Arena, 25-17, 25-20, 25-23.
Campbell Paris powered the offense, contributing 12 kills to lead all scorers in the match. Northwestern’s hitters were helped out by 28 assists from Ellie Stiernagle, who collected her fourth double-double of the season with 10 digs as well. Meanwhile, the ‘Cats’ defense limited the Hokies to an attack percentage of just .080.
How It Happened
SET 1 | Virginia Tech opened the match with three straight points, but the ‘Cats quickly countered with a 6-0 run to take the lead. Errors on both sides kept the set close, but Mara Štiglic and Paris preserved Northwestern’s narrow lead with four combined kills in the first half of the frame. The Hokies briefly grabbed the lead back, 12-11, but back-to-back kills by Paris flipped the scoreboard once again. Northwestern would never trail from that point, outscoring Virginia Tech 8-2 in the final stretch to close out a 25-17 win in set one. Paris’ four kills led the Wildcats in the first set, and Gigi Navarrete served up a pair of aces to help secure the 1-0 lead in the match.
SET 2 | The Hokies once again began the set with an early lead, and the Wildcats once again struck back quickly to take over. After dropping the first two points, Northwestern got on the board with a kill from first-year Maya Stillwell. Virginia Tech’s offense struggled in second set, and the Wildcats took a 9-7 lead on a string of attack errors by the Hokies. From there, Paris took over once again, running off three kills to extend her team’s lead. Another ace from Navarrete sent the ‘Cats into the media timeout up 15-9. After falling behind by as many as eight points, the Hokies put up a fight late, using a 5-0 run to draw within three. The comeback fell short, however, as a final kill from Paris helped lock up another set for Northwestern, 25-20.
SET 3 | The third set was the most closely contested, featuring 11 ties and four lead changes before a winner was decided. Virginia Tech held a narrow lead for the first half of the frame, but the ‘Cats hung tough, keeping the set within four points. Štiglic came alive, recording three early kills to help Northwestern draw even by the midway point, 14-14. The Hokies led as late as 22-21, but Bella Bullington had the final say for Northwestern, following up a pair of Virginia Tech errors with a kill to seal the final set, 25-23, and the match, 3-0.
Game Notes
- Paris reached double-digit kills for the fourth time this season and led the team in that category for the first time since Aug. 29 at American.
- Lauren Dignan led all ‘Cats with 14 digs, her fifth straight match in double figures. She has recorded at least 10 digs in every match she has worn the libero jersey.
- Stiernagle’s 28 assists against Virginia Tech brought her to 274 on the season, moving her into ninth place on Northwestern’s all-time list of first-year assists. She surpassed Alexa Rousseau’s 2020 season, which saw the setter record 260 assists in the shortened, ten-match campaign.
- Navarrete finished with three aces. It was the fourth time this season that a Wildcat has recorded three or more aces in a match - each instance by a different player (Bullington at Georgetown, Štiglic vs. Alabama, Wright vs. Butler).
Up Next
The 'Cats will continue action in the Northwestern Invitational tomorrow evening, when they will face off with the LIU Sharks at 7 p.m. CT. Action will be streamed on B1G+.