OXFORD, Miss. (August 30, 2026) - The Northern Arizona women's volleyball team secured its first win of the new season Sunday, defeating Southeastern Louisiana. The Lumberjacks (1-2, 0-0 Big Sky) took down the Lions (0-3, 0-0 Southland) 3-1 (25-17, 25-17, 23-25, 25-21).
"We knew going into the weekend that the competition would be tough. We were definitely challenged in some ways that will help us going forward," head coach Ken Murphy said.
Four Lumberjacks recorded double-digit kills, led by Hanah Stoddard with 17. Gigi Greenlee added 14 kills, while Quincey Coyle and Laney Wilson contributed 13 and 11, respectively.
Stoddard and Coyle each recorded double-doubles. Stoddard matched her season-high 17 kills from Saturday and added 10 digs, while posting her best hitting percentage of the three-day tournament at .278. She also contributed three block assists. Coyle finished with 13 kills and a team-high 16 digs. She added four block assists and totaled 17 points, including two service aces.
Ella Hosfeld paced the Lumberjacks with 37 assists and three service aces, while Taryn Davis added 16 assists. Greenlee also made an impact defensively, recording five blocks to go along with her 14 kills. Libero Lilly Holmes anchored the back row with 21 digs, bringing her tournament total to 51.
As a team, NAU recorded 60 kills compared to 45 for the Lions and hit .239 on the afternoon.
The Lumberjacks fell behind early in the opening set before taking their first lead at 8-7 during a 5-0 run. SLU briefly regained the advantage, but NAU responded with a decisive 12-2 run to take a 20-11 lead. Kills from Stoddard and Wilson helped the 'Jacks maintain control down the stretch as they closed out the set, 25-17.
NAU again overcame an early deficit in the second set, turning a 3-1 hole into a 4-3 lead with a 3-0 run. The Lumberjacks continued to build momentum with strong play at the net, getting kills from Stoddard, Wilson, Greenlee and Avery Gottschalk to extend their advantage to 16-10. After the Lions cut the deficit to three, the 'Jacks answered with a 6-1 run, highlighted by kills from Gottschalk, Coyle and Wilson, to move ahead 22-14. The Lumberjacks closed out the set 25-17 to take a 2-0 match lead.
SLU opened the third set with a 3-0 run, but NAU quickly battled back to tie the score at 4-4. The teams traded points throughout a tightly contested frame that featured 14 ties. NAU briefly took a 15-13 lead behind consecutive kills from Gottschalk and Stoddard, but SLU answered and eventually took a 21–19 lead after a 3–0 run. The Lumberjacks fought back to tie the set at 23-23, with key kills from Wilson and Coyle, but SLU scored the final two points to force a fourth set with a 25-23 victory.
NAU came out strong in the fourth set, with back-to-back service aces from Hosfeld helping the Lumberjacks take a 5-3 lead. NAU then erupted for a 5-0 run, featuring kills from Greenlee and Coyle, to push the lead to 11-6. After SLU battled back to cut the deficit to 14-12, the Lumberjacks responded with four straight points to regain control at 18-12. The Lions mounted one final push, scoring five consecutive points to pull within 22-20, but NAU refused to let the set slip away. Greenlee answered with a key kill to stop the run, and the Lumberjacks closed out the set, 25-21, to secure the 3-1 victory.
"For the most part, I thought we competed hard and played more like our style as the weekend went on. We struggled closing out sets, but I'm confident that will improve as this team matures," Murphy said.
The Lumberjacks will look to build on the victory next weekend when they travel to Brookings, S.D., Sept. 4-5, for the SDSU Invitational. NAU will face Bradley and South Dakota State on Friday before taking on Western Illinois on Saturday.
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