DAVIS, Calif. (August 25, 2018) – In just their second match of a long season, the Northern Arizona volleyball team showed their resolve to prevail over Utah Valley, 29-31, 25-18, 25-22, 19-25, 18-16, Saturday morning. The Lumberjacks, spurred by several big individual performances, grinded out the grueling match to pick up their first win of the season, and the Aggie Invitational.
NAU will hit the court once more later Saturday afternoon to face Holy Cross at 5 p.m.
"This match had everything that is tough about volleyball," said head coach
Ken Murphy. "There were so many highs and lows; so many times where we had to be resilient and fight through when we weren't playing our best. It shows a lot about our character and growth. The defensive effort we had today shows a lot about our identity and how we can make this a special season for ourselves."
NAU relied on its defense in a match where it only hit .161 across the five sets. Led by senior
Jordan Anderson's career-high 36 digs – the fourth-highest single match total in school history and most by a Lumberjack since 2008 – NAU totaled 102 digs. It was NAU's first 100-dig match in nearly two years.
Meanwhile, the Lumberjacks' blocking presence was crucial in keeping the Wolverines to just .130 hitting. Junior
Abby Akin was in on nine of the Lumberjacks' 13.0 team blocks, finishing one shy of what would have been her first career double-double.
NAU's resiliency was tested on a number of occasions, none bigger than in the decisive fifth set. Fueled by two straight aces from Akin, the 'Jacks jumped out of the gates with a 5-1 advantage and then appeared to lead comfortably at 10-4. However, Utah Valley had other thoughts scoring six straight to tie it at 10-10.
Freshman
Ryann Davis' kill put NAU at match point first at 14-12, only for Utah Valley to string together three straight points and put NAU at the brink of dropping its second straight match to open the season. Redshirt senior
Kaylie Jorgenson, who finished with 20 kills and 22 digs, staved off the Wolverines' match point before freshman
Aubrea Bandfield's ace gave NAU another chance to win. After Utah Valley held off, NAU clinched the win with the final two points.
After dropping the marathon first set, which featured 16 ties and six lead changes, the 'Jacks responded to win the next two sets. In the second set, the Lumberjacks' lead stood at 16-13 before an 8-2 run put the score out of reach. Akin and sophomore
Heaven Harris' third tandem block of the set would tie the match at 1-1 three points later.
The 'Jacks closed the third set strong, battling back from a late 21-19 deficit to take the critical stanza. Three Lumberjack kills, two coming from Davis, pushed NAU back in front of the see-saw third set and in total NAU would claim six of the final seven points.
Utah Valley's most effective set came in the fourth with the Wolverines hitting .289 to extend the match to the distance. The 'Jacks never led in the fourth, but turned it on to start the fifth.
Bandfield, in her second collegiate match, joined Jorgenson in the double-double column with 21 assists and 11 digs. Harris (12) and Akin (10) also put down double-digit kills, while Akin tied a career-high with five service aces.
NAU totaled a dozen aces with Akin and junior
Abby Stomp combining for nine of them. Stomp's four aces set a new career-best.
Live stats for the Lumberjacks' Saturday evening match versus Holy Cross at 5 p.m. can be found
here.
