VB2K21: The Recap

August 28

Northern Kentucky 3, Ohio 2

Northern Kentucky overcame a 2-1 deficit to defeat Ohio (15-25, 25-21, 23-25, 27-25, 15-8) in Columbus, Ohio. Anna Brinkmann led Northern Kentucky with 15 kills while Anna Burke posted 21 digs. The Norse survived a strong effort from Maggie Nedoma who paced Ohio with 23 kills on 55 attempts. Ohio's Sam Steele had 34 digs to lead all players. Northern Kentucky combated Nedoma's play with a collective effort from players which included Abby Kanakry, Reilly Briggs and Joy Banks who combined for 26 kills to compliment Brinkmann's effort. Brinkmann also finished the game with 15 digs.

BYU 3, UNLV 0

After winning its first two matches sweeping LIU on August 27 and Southern Utah earlier on the August 28, UNLV ran into a problem when it face 15th ranked BYU in Provo, Utah. In front of 4,453 fans, BYU beat UNLV 3-0 (25-14, 25-16, 25-15). BYU outhit UNLV .375 to .074. Heather Gneiting had eight kills with a hitting percentage of .636, while Kennedy Easchenberg tallied eight kills on a .583 hitting clip for BYU. Kenzie Koerber posted eight digs with seven kills on a .400 hitting percentage.

UNLV's Milica Tasic led her team with 11 kills. Shelby Capilonch had eight digs for the Rebels.

Clemson 3, North Carolina A&T 1

Clemson survived a tough effort from North Carolina A&T with a 3-1 (25-15, 21-25, 25-15, 28-26) victory in Clemson, South Carolina. North Carolina A&T bested Samford in its season opener on August 27, and found itself in a 1-1 tie after splitting two sets with Clemson. Jenna Moore posted 50 assists and nine digs to lead Clemson. Devan Taylor led the Tigers with 18 digs and Kaylee Martine had 19 kills. Kaylee Martin led Clemson with 19 kills. She also posted 11 digs. Naiya Sawtelle paced North Carolina A&T with 17 kills to go with 10 digs and three assisted blocks.

Little Rock 3, Arkansas 2

In two previous meetings Little Rock loss to Arkansas which may be expected by most, but this year things didn't go according to expectation. Little Rock recorded its first win over an SEC opponent since 2013, when it beat Mississippi State. The Trojans beat the host Razorbacks 3-2 (25-22, 29-27, 23-25, 22-25, 15-13). Laura Jansen tallied 22 kills and 13 digs, while her teammate Laure Jansen had 21 kills and 20 digs for Little Rock. The Trojans were led in blocks by Nicole Medlin's seven which included one solo. Zanobia Willis posted five blocks. Arkansas' Taylor Head posted 19 kills and 14 digs.

Tulane 3, California 1

For the first time in history Tulane and California crossed paths on the volleyball court. The Green Wave captured a 3-1 (25-23, 26-28, 25-16, 25-22) win on their home gym behind Jillian Dits' 12 digs along with Lexie Douglas' 10. Tulane outhit California .308 to .213. Michelle Urguhart had 15 kills on a .444 hitting percentage.

California was led by Katie Smoot's 18 kills. Bella Bergmark had a hitting percentage of .643 while collecting nine kills on just 14 attempts. Sarah Schrag guided the Golden Bears with 12 digs.

Western Michigan 3, Canisius 0

The Broncos of Western Michigan improved to 2-1, after beating Canisius in East Lansing, Michigan at the Spartan Invitational hosted by Michigan State. Western Michigan suffered a 3-0 defeat in its opener, August 27, to Michigan State but bounced back the next day to beat Wright State 3-0 before its win over Canisius which it won convincingly 25-18, 25-12, 25-16. Julia Marr lifted Western Michigan with 12 kills on 20 attempts for a .550 percentage. Rose Duffy led the Broncos with 29 assists and nine digs.