FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. – Senior Janae Vander Ploeg put pressure on Houston Baptist early and never let up as she propelled the Northern Arizona volleyball team to a 25-19, 25-12, 25-18 sweep on the first day of the Lumberjack Classic. Vander Ploeg treated the raucous Rolle Activity Center crowd to a dominating display with a match-high 16 kills on a career-high .455 hitting percentage. NAU improved to 3-1 in the early season, winning its 2015 home opener in the process.

"Tonight was a great way to open up the weekend," Vander Ploeg said. "We had great crowd support tonight and it makes a huge difference for us. It gives us more confidence going into tomorrow and when our team comes together and plays together, we feel we can do anything."

Houston Baptist, who had entered the match a perfect 4-0 without dropping a set, aced the match's first point and took the first three points, temporarily jolting the Lumberjacks and their home crowd, before Vander Ploeg pounded NAU's first point to the floor. After the brief Husky run to start the match, the 'Jacks found their composure and used an 8-2 run capped by junior Lauren Jacobsen's first of a career-high five aces on the night to take a 10-6 lead. Never allowing Houston Baptist to get back into the set, NAU seized control with Vander Ploeg finishing off the opening set with her sixth kill and setting the tone for the rest of the night in the process.

"We had to settle down and focus," said assistant coach Catherine Chavez. "(Last week) in Virginia, we had jitters also and we needed to figure out how to get out of that. To be a successful team, you have to stay confident and focused throughout the match and we did that today. We had a couple of hiccups (to start out), but the girls saw that and made adjustments."

Locked in a tight second set to start out, the Lumberjacks turned up the block to completely take the Huskies out of their attack. NAU held a slim 9-6 lead when Jacobsen and redshirt freshman Brittni Dorsey combined for the first of two blocks during a five-point run that extended its advantage out to eight points. In all, the Lumberjacks used five blocks to force the Huskies into a -.100 hitting percentage in the set as NAU cruised into the intermission with a 2-0 lead.

Jacobsen's career night at the service line reached its peak in the third set as two perfectly placed aces – her fourth and fifth of the night – were critical in a four-point swing that gave the Lumberjacks a 10-4 cushion. Houston Baptist would not go quietly though, answering with four of the next five points and trailed by just three as late as 15-12. A Jacobsen kill started NAU's final push towards a sweep and by end of a 6-2 spurt, the Lumberjacks held a 21-14 edge. Fittingly, Vander Ploeg would put a bow on Friday's match with her 16th kill, wrapping up NAU's third 3-0 sweep in as many victories to open 2015.

"We play the way that we do because of our focus and our effort," Chavez said. "We want to keep emphasizing that and we played with intensity tonight. We came back from the Virginia trip and went 2-1. It wasn't quite what we wanted, but we had to figure some stuff out and the girls were successful at the things we came out to do."

NAU's exceptional night included outhitting Houston Baptist for the match, .350-.054. It was the second consecutive match in which the Lumberjacks hit .350 or better. The Lumberjacks also posted nine service aces, with Jacobsen contributing five and Vander Ploeg and senior Payton Bock chipping in two apiece. Bock and Dorsey each recorded five individual blocks as NAU outblocked Houston Baptist, 9.0-2.0.

Vander Ploeg committed just one error on 33 swings and was the only player on either team to reach double-digit kills. Jacobsen finished with eight kills herself. Redshirt senior Stacia Williams posted a team-high nine digs, while junior Jensen Barton recorded 27 assists in the winning effort.

Loyola Marymount swept Liberty in Friday's first match. The Lumberjack Classic presented by the Arizona Sports & Entertainment Commission continues Saturday morning at 10 a.m. with LMU and HBU squaring off.

NAU will play its first of two matches on Saturday at 12 noon versus Liberty and will conclude the tournament in the night capper versus Loyola Marymount at 7 p.m. in the Rolle.