BGSU volleyball (11-7, 6-1) squared off against Northern Illinois (10-5, 3-4) on Friday evening after facing each other on Thursday night, with the Falcons sweeping the Huskies in three to earn their sixth Mid-American Conference (MAC) win of the season.
BG entered Friday’s match hungry for consecutive wins against the Huskies after defeating them in four sets the night before, and gave all the alumni that came to the game a show to watch.
“It’s fun to make them proud,” said head coach Alex DelPiombo. “I think that’s the most special part of today. It’s fun to look up and then smile, and we had a week of adversity, and we’re still who we are today. We didn’t give up. We’re still fighting. We still know that we’re going to win.”
The Falcons came out of the gates with an early 4-0 edge over NIU, forcing the Huskies to call their first timeout of the set. Following the timeout, NIU stormed back, tying the match at nine, and eventually taking a 12-9 advantage.
But the Orange and Brown came right back, regaining the lead after sophomore defensive specialist Avery Anders lobbed a ball to junior outside hitter Avery Hobson for a kill. This point allowed BGSU to regain the lead 17-16, and later, junior outside hitter Marija Tabak spiked the ball, tying the match at 20.
The tight scoring continued throughout the rest of the first set, but Bowling Green eventually prevailed and won the set with a kill by senior middle blocker Jessica Andrews, winning 25-23.
The second set started with Northern Illinois possessing a 7-3 advantage, forcing BG to use its first timeout of the set. Then, a block by freshman middle blocker Kendall Williams brought the Orange and Brown within three, making it a 7-4 Huskies lead.
Later, Northern Illinois took control of the match as they gripped a 14-8 advantage, leaving Bowling Green with no other choice but to use their final timeout. However, the Falcons came out of the timeout with a new focus. Andrews continued to dominate with two more kills, and shrinking the NIU upper hand to 15-12.
The back-and-forth affair carried on as the match was knotted up at 19. And moments later, the Falcons overcame the duel, winning the second set 25-21.
Like the second set, the Huskies possessed an early 5-1 advantage. Yet, BGSU stormed back, cutting the NIU lead within one, making it a 7-6 Northern Illinois lead, and eventually tying the match at 12 after a kill committed by Hobson.
Just like the first two sets, neither team could orchestrate much separation. Although the Huskies did manage to pull away by three, prospering over a 20-17 advantage. Once more, BG fought back after another kill executed by Hobson, making it a 21-19 NIU edge.
As Bowling Green reached a 24-23 edge, the Falcons began to see the finish line, and one point later won the final set with a final score of 25-23.
As a whole, the Orange and Brown played extremely well as a team, despite not having senior opposite Lauryn Hovey and junior setter Amanda Otton available due to their respective injuries. Not to mention, Bowling Green was able to hold Northern Illinois to an extremely low hitting percentage at .098, compared to the Falcons’ .209 hitting percentage.
DelPiombo was asked what makes this volleyball team click so well, despite the two key players who were missing in today’s action.
“We spend a lot of time together. We spend a lot of time on unity, and most importantly, our whole team is all in on Bowling Green volleyball. They’re all in on this program,” said DelPiombo. “When you have that kind of attitude throughout the whole team, the culture creates itself. It creates an atmosphere that I’m willing to do whatever it takes for the team.”
The Falcons now sit with a 12-7 overall record and a 6-1 conference record in the MAC. BGSU will now focus all its attention on its next opponent, Ball State, as those two schools go to war next Thursday in Bowling Green, Ohio.
Falcon Media Sports Network will have full coverage of the match on bgfalconmedia.com.
