Great Lakes Wire

The Northern Michigan Wildcats women's volleyball team secured their third consecutive win and their first road victory of the season after defeating Saginaw Valley State in a five-set match on Friday night. The final scores were 25-19, 13-25, 25-18, 25-27, and 15-9. With this result, the Wildcats improved to a 3-2 record in Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) play and are now 4-9 overall.

Northern Michigan recorded its best offensive performance of the season with a .280 hitting percentage and totaled 64 kills. Four players reached double digits in kills. Senior McKenzie Gruner led with a career-high 16 kills on a .394 hitting percentage, marking her third straight match with at least 13 kills. She also contributed 1.5 blocks.

"I am incredibly proud of this team for getting it done tonight," said Gruner following the win. "Especially in another fifth set, there wasn't a second where I thought we weren't going to win given the determination on everyone's face. We are still not finished though, we have to get it done at LSSU tomorrow."

Freshman Kaylie McIntosh and redshirt sophomore Emila Gulock each added 14 kills while achieving new personal bests and hitting .333. Madison York contributed ten kills. For Saginaw Valley State, Rachel Townsend led all players with 27 kills.

Setter Allie Barlow posted a season-best with 56 assists for Northern Michigan, while libero Liesl Haugen anchored the defense by collecting 25 digs—one of four Wildcats who reached double digits in that category.

In the opening set, Northern Michigan took control early through efficient offense and closed out the frame behind key plays from Gruner and McIntosh as well as an ace by Taylor Smaka to secure a 25-19 win.

Saginaw Valley responded strongly in the second set with a decisive run that resulted in a lopsided score of 25-13 to even up the match.

The third set saw Northern Michigan regain momentum after an initial deficit. McIntosh delivered several crucial points during tight moments before leading NMU on a late surge that clinched the set at 25-18.

The fourth set was closely contested throughout; although NMU built an early lead and later went ahead by five points late in the frame, Saginaw Valley rallied back to force extra points before winning it at 27-25.

In the deciding fifth set, Northern Michigan established an early advantage which they maintained through consistent offense from McIntosh and ultimately sealed the victory with efficient play down the stretch for a final score of 15-9.

Next up for Northern Michigan is an away game against Lake Superior State University scheduled for Saturday afternoon in Sault Ste. Marie.