FAIRFIELD, Conn. -- Faced with its toughest test of the 2023 season to date, Fairfield University Volleyball welcomed Big Ten foe Northwestern to the Leo D. Mahoney Arena on Sunday afternoon. The Stags were on the short side of a 3-0 sweep to the visiting Wildcats by set scores of 25-15, 25-15 and 25-13.
The loss brings the Stags to 3-4 on the season. Northwestern completes a 3-0 weekend in the Northeast, heading back to Evanston with a 5-3 record.
"Northwestern was the best team we've played this season, and I think we did some positive things against them. We were scrappy and didn't back down against a very good opponent, and I was happy to see improvement in some of the areas that we focused on in practice this week," said Head Coach Nancy Somera. "But we made too many errors on things that had nothing to do with who was on the opposite side of the net. We had some passing breakdowns and needed to be stronger on the block to keep Northwestern from getting comfortable. A Big Ten-caliber team is going to capitalize on those errors, and that was a major difference in the match today."
The Stags had a balanced attack offensively, led by six kills from Allie Elliott. Mikayla Haut and Maya Walker each added five finishers, with Janna Schlageter and Svenja Rodenbüsch notching four apiece.
Blakely Montgomery ran the offense and finished with 14 assists.
Rounding out the scoring, Abby Jandro served up a pair of aces with Schlageter and Rodenbüsch each landing one from the endline. The scoring on defense was limited to one solo block from Haut.
Kyla Berg donned the libero jersey for the Stags and posted a team-leading 12 digs. Haut added eight from the back row, with Elliott and Montgomery each chipping in six.
How It Happened
SET 1 | The Stags got off to a fast start, grabbing a 5-2 lead during the opening exchange. Action remained back-and-forth out to a 12-11 Fairfield advantage before the Wildcats ran off a 4-0 run to claim a lead that they would not relinquish. Another seven-point spurt put the set out of reach as Northwestern salted away a 25-15 opening frame.
SET 2 | The Wildcats grabbed the early lead in Set 2, and kept the Stags at arm's length during the opening stretch of the stanza. A 5-0 run broke the set open at 14-6, and Fairfield was unable to respond in kind as Northwestern crept closer to set point, eventually finishing off the frame with another 25-15 final.
SET 3 | A 1-0 lead was the Stags' only advantage in the third frame, as Northwestern raced out to a 9-3 lead. Fairfield battled back to within no closer than four points the rest of the way, with the Wildcats completely the sweep on the back of a 25-13 final.
Fairfield concludes the non-conference slate this Wednesday, Sept. 13 at Bryant. The Bulldogs are 7-4 on the season, most recently posting wins over CCSU and Saint Peter's followed by a loss to host Providence this weekend at the Friar Classic.
Action returns to Leo D. Mahoney Arena on Sept. 16-17 as the Stags open the MAAC slate against Canisius and Niagara.
This article created using technology provided by Data Skrive.
