GREELEY, Colo. (November 21, 2025) - The Northern Arizona women's volleyball team clinched the Big Sky Conference championship outright on Friday night, defeating Northern Colorado 3-1 at Bank of Colorado Arena.
"That was just a fantastic collegiate match," head coach Ken Murphy said. "UNC is such a great team and it means a lot to us to be able to compete as well as we did in that environment against that good of a team and with those consequences. It just shows how much growth we have had as a team and how that work has accumulated over the course of the year."
The opening set stayed tight throughout, with neither team leading by more than three points. NAU gained its first separation midway through the frame with a 4-0 run that included consecutive blocks from Gigi Greenlee and Laney Wilson to move ahead 18-14.
Hanah Stoddard powered the offense with seven kills in the set, converting clean looks in transition off sets from both Keira Hall and Ella Hosfeld. Northern Colorado briefly reclaimed momentum late and tied the frame at 24–24, but NAU responded with a kill from Moran and a Stoddard putaway to take the opener, 27-25.
NAU opened the second set with sharper serving and back-row defense, highlighted by a service ace from Stoddard and strong coverage from libero Melia Barlow. After trailing 17-13, NAU used a three-point run that included a Greenlee block and a forced attack error to pull within one.
The Lumberjacks tied it at 21-21 and took the lead for good when Stoddard scored on a transition swing off a Barlow set. Two consecutive block points pushed NAU to 24-21. Though UNC briefly extended the frame, NAU closed it out 26-24 on a clean attack from Stoddard and a Bear error.
Northern Colorado controlled most of the third set, slowing down NAU's offense and capitalizing on a string of attack errors. The 'Jacks trailed 6-11 before mounting an 8-2 run that featured multiple Stoddard kills, along with putaways by Moran, Wadsworth, Greenlee, and Wilson, to briefly take a 14-13 lead. However, UNC answered with an extended run, held the lead the rest of the way, and took the set 25-16.
Needing one set to secure both the match and the Big Sky title outright, NAU delivered its most composed frame of the night. Stoddard and Moran combined for early kills to put NAU ahead 12-9. The 'Jacks' block again played a key role, with Wilson and Gottschalk slowing UNC's left side attack and forcing out-of-system swings. Up 18-16, the Lumberjacks closed the match on a 7-3 run, highlighted by back-to-back kills from Wadsworth and a final swing from Moran to seal the 25-19 victory.
NAU was powered by standout performances across the board, led offensively by Stoddard, who delivered a match-high 18 kills, followed by Moran with 16 and Wadsworth with 11. Stoddard also made an impact from the service line with two aces. At the net, Greenlee and Wilson anchored the defense with four blocks apiece, while Avery Gottschalk added two more. The Lumberjacks ran a balanced offense thanks to strong setting from Hall and Hosfeld, who shared the load with 24 assists each, while Barlow contributed five more. Defensively, Barlow dominated the back row with 21 digs, supported by Moran with 13 and Hall with 10.
As the No. 1 seed, the Lumberjacks will face Idaho State on Monday, Nov. 24, at 1 p.m. MST in the quarterfinal round of the Big Sky Conference Tournament. The match will be streamed on ESPN+, with live stats also available.
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