EVANSTON, Ill. - Northwestern volleyball (7-16, 0-12 B1G) fell 3-2 to the Rutgers Scarlet Knights (11-13, 2-10 B1G) on Saturday evening inside Welsh-Ryan Arena, dropping its Senior Night match by a final score of 25-23, 22-25, 23-25, 26-24, 15-12.
Bella Bullington and Campbell Paris both finished with 19 kills, Paris on a team-best .326 attacking percentage. Along with the kills, Bullington’s 10 digs gave the sophomore her second straight double-double and her third of the season overall. Ellie Stiernagle tallied 46 assists to go along with 12 digs, good for her seventh double-double of the season, and Lauren Dignan matched her total from last match with 17 digs to lead the team.
How It Happened
SET 1 | Set one set the tone for the match, featuring four lead changes and five ties. The teams traded short runs early, with Paris leading the way for the Wildcats with three quick kills. By the midway point, Rutgers had secured the upper hand again, leading 15-11. They would maintain that lead through the majority of the set, but a late five-point service run by Drew Wright and the ‘Cats brought the sides within a point, at 22-21. Despite the rally, the Scarlet Knights held on, winning the first set by a narrow 25-23 margin.
SET 2 | The teams were evenly matched again in the second, but this time, the ‘Cats came out on top. Northwestern and Rutgers played to 10 ties before the media break, with Paris once again leading the Wildcats’ charge. Following a final tie at 19-19, Northwestern finally pulled away. The ‘Cats used three kills from senior Lily Wagner to close out in the final stages of set two, winning 25-22 to even the match at one set each.
SET 3 | Rutgers had the advantage for most of set three, but the ‘Cats turned the tables late to take a 2-1 lead in the match. The Scarlet Knights led by as many as seven points, 10-3, before Northwestern began its comeback. Cate Schnell led a 5-0 Northwestern run from the service line, following up a kill of her own with an ace to help guide the ‘Cats back within two points, 10-8. Rutgers had regained a bit of control by the media timeout, but Northwestern came out ready, scoring six of the next eight points to take its first lead of the match since the opening point. The set was tied up at 17, 18, 19 and 20, and Rutgers briefly grabbed the lead back, but in the end, it was Paris who closed things out, using her fourth kill of the set to win it 25-23 for the Wildcats.
SET 4 | Northwestern took the lead in set four at 3-2 and wouldn’t trail again until the closing points. Led by Bullington, who collected six kills in the set, Northwestern expanded its lead to as much as a five-point advantage, 17-12. Schnell was also instrumental in the frame, tallying five kills to double her season total in just one set. Rutgers didn’t go quietly, however. After Northwestern reached match point, Rutgers ran off five straight points to complete its comeback, 26-24, and send the contest to a fifth set.
SET 5 | The Scarlet Knights rode their momentum to an early lead in the fifth, opening up a 4-1 lead with three kills from Malia Romes. Paris and Bullington both put kills on the board, then the ‘Cats took advantage of Rutgers errors to narrow the gap to just one point, 9-8. Rutgers pushed the advantage back to 13-9, then staved off a late Northwestern push to close out a 15-12 win in set five and a 3-2 victory in the match.
Game Notes
- Schnell finished with a career-high seven kills along with an ace and a solo block.
- Stiernagle’s 46 assists boosted her to 812 on the season, making her the eighth Northwestern first-year in program history and the first since 2014 to record 800+ assists.
- Five Wildcats recorded ten or more digs against Rutgers: Dignan (17), Stiernagle (12), Gigi Navarrete (11), Bullington (10) and Wright (10).
- Northwestern honored five seniors after the match: Wright, Navarrete, Wagner, Paris and Gabrielle Gerry.
Up Next
Northwestern will return to action next weekend, when the ‘Cats head west to face off with a pair of foes in the Pacific Northwest. They are set to visit Washington next Friday at 9 p.m. CT, then Oregon on Sunday at 8 p.m. CT. Both matches will be streamed on B1G+.