JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (September 1, 2023) - During its first day at the Jacksonville Invitational, the Northern Arizona volleyball team dropped both of its matches to Jacksonville and Florida A&M. NAU (2-3) fell to host Jacksonville in straight sets, 20-25, 15-25, 19-25. And a five-set tilt went the way of Florida A&M, 25-21, 25-22, 23-25, 18-25, 13-25.
"Definitely a tough day for us," head coach Ken Murphy said. "We are learning a lot about ourselves, and most of it is really good. Millie [O'Ketter] had another outstanding day and I thought Jordan Cherniss made some really important contributions at important times. As we become more confident and consistent, I am certain that the results will improve."
NAU will finish its Florida trip tomorrow with a match against The Citadel. The Bulldogs, like Northern Arizona, played a five-set match with Florida A&M on Friday. It was a 15-13 deciding set win for The Citadel in that match. The first serve between the two is scheduled for 8 a.m.
You can read more in-depth about the Lumberjack results in both matches below.
Jacksonville Recap
Both Northern Arizona and Jacksonville came out of the gates attacking in the opening set, with both teams hitting percentages over the .350 mark and each squad having double-digit kills. Both redshirt freshman Hanah Stoddard and sophomore Kylie Moran combined contributed eight of the Lumberjacks' 13 kills in the first set.
Stoddard would finish the contest recording her first double-double of the season with 11 kills and 11 digs and hit a season-high .375 from the floor. Moran would strike a total of eight kills in the match.
However, after going toe-to-toe with the Lumberjacks for much of the first set, it was the Dolphins .382 hitting percentage and 16 kills that allowed them to pull away from NAU. It was Jacksonville's second time this season in four attempts at winning the opening set.
Jacksonville would waste no time in the second set, either. Jumping out to a 13-6 lead in set two, they would match their first set total of 16 kills and attacked at a .289 clip. The hosts continued to put their foot on the gas pedal, refusing to let Northern Arizona get back within five points the rest of the way.
After dropping the opening two sets for the first time this season, the beginning of set three saw NAU come out with a sense of urgency, with Neche Newton, Sophia Wadsworth and Moran picking up five kills in the first 14 points. The Lumberjacks went up 9-5 and required Jacksonville to use its first timeout.
The Dolphins responded after the timeout by winning nine of the next 14 points to retake the lead 15-14 in a set that provided eight tie scores and three lead changes. NAU would tie the score twice within the next three points before Jacksonville went on a 7-0 run to shut the door in the opening match of the Jacksonville Invitational.
In the end, it was a fourth consecutive Northern Arizona match that saw the Lumberjacks out-block their opponent. NAU recorded four total blocks in the defeat to Jacksonville, with Wadsworth and freshman Avery Gottschalk leading with two block assists each.
Florida A&M Recap
Facing off with a Florida A&M team that qualified for the NCAA Tournament a year ago, the Lumberjacks held their own in the opening set. Northern Arizona jumped out to an 8-4 lead that included both a 7-0 NAU run and four Florida A&M attack errors through the first 12 points of the match.
The Rattlers would continue to try and nitpick their way back into set one. However, a 4-0 Northern Arizona run pushed the Lumberjack lead from two to five, and that was all the real estate that NAU needed to win their first set of the tournament, 25-21.
Florida A&M, after starting set one and winning four of the first five points, got out to a 6-1 advantage to start the second set. In the second, Northern Arizona would trail by as many as seven points before fighting their way back into the set, paced by a second 7-0 run that featured three kills from senior Savannah Bloom in the process to put the Lumberjacks ahead at 17-16.
Bloom, with 13 kills, was one of three NAU players to finish with at least ten kills in the contest. The others accomplishing this feat were redshirt freshman Hanah Stoddard with 11 and sophomore Kylie Moran who set a new career high with 17 kills against Florida A&M to go along with her 11 digs and second double-double of the season.
Already, it is the second time this season that at least three Lumberjacks have had 10 or more in the kill category, with the other being the five-setter against Prairie View A&M last week at Tarleton State.
Defensively, senior Millie O'Ketter and Stoddard both racked up 20-plus digs, with Stoddard achieving a career-high in the category. Two others, Moran and junior Karya Suvarioglu recorded at least ten. With her 11 kills and 20 digs, Stoddard recorded her first double-double as a Lumberjack in the defeat. As did Suvarioglu, who complimented her dig total with 26 assists.
Tied 22-22 in the late stages of set two, NAU would win the next three points on kills from Moran and redshirt sophomore Sophia Wadsworth along with a service ace from Moran.
In a match that featured three different 7-0 streaks, after the first two went Northern Arizona's way, it was time for Florida A&M to have their turn. Trailing 5-7, the third set saw the Rattlers rattle off seven consecutive points that would give them the lead, and the SWAC champions from a year ago did not look back. A late surge from NAU saw the Lumberjacks take four straight points to move within one, but Florida A&M would finish off the third with a kill from Emerald Jacobs.
Following a photo finish to set three, the Rattlers left little doubt in the fourth set, hitting a match-best .237 in set four, which was the only time either one of the teams had a hitting percentage over .200 in a set during the entire match.
The Lumberjacks would have their chances in the fifth and final set, starting with advantages of 7-3 and 9-4, before Florida A&M took 11 of the final 15 points to earn their first win of the season and dropped the Lumberjacks to 2-3, with two of the three losses coming in five.
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