Skip To Main Content

North Park University Athletics

gattabenu22
3
Winner North Park NPU 13-4,2-1 CCIW
2
Millikin MIL-U 10-5,2-2 CCIW
Winner
North Park NPU
13-4,2-1 CCIW
3
Final
2
Millikin MIL-U
10-5,2-2 CCIW
Set Scores
Team 1 2 3 4 5 F
North Park NPU 15 25 25 20 15 (3)
Millikin MIL-U 25 17 23 25 13 (2)

Game Recap: Women's Volleyball | | Tyler Woolbright

Another Program First for NPU Volleyball - Vikings Beat Millikin on the Road

The two teams have played every year since 1986 and first squared off in 1980

DECATUR, Ill. – The North Park women's volleyball team had nowhere to hide after receiving votes in the AVCA Top 25 poll; the Vikings faced Millikin, who also received votes in the poll. In a gutsy, five-set match, North Park came out on top.

In front of a rowdy Millikin crowd, North Park immediately had a hill to climb. The Big Blue bolted ahead with a 7-1 first set lead and never let the Vikings get closer than five points in the opening set. However, North Park picked up the pace in the second set.

With a one-point lead (6-5) and the ball now being served by Adriana Rodriguez, the Vikings rattled off seven-straight scores. This included a Rodriguez ace, kill by Kailyn Matthews, and block by Raghen Walker. Stealing the momentum back, North Park captured a 25-17 second set win.

The third and fourth sets of the night both saw each team reach the 20-point mark; North Park won set three, 25-23, while Millikin won set four, 25-20. The match would go to a fifth set.

It seemed the Big Blue would go quietly in the final set of the night, as a Millikin attack error and kills by Adriana Rodriguez, set up by Christina Gatta and Carolina Aviles, put North Park up 3-0. This would not be the case, though, as the Big Blue drove five-straight points to take a 5-3 lead. 

The two teams battled to 8-8, 10-10, and 12-12 ties before kills by Rhianna Huebner and Matthews, alongside a Big Blue error, gave the Vikings a big CCIW win.


Quick Hits:

  • Another program first – North Park earns a win at Millikin
    • In a series dating back to 1980, the Vikings had never won a match at Millikin
  • Gatta with a season second-best 42 assists, alongside many game-saving touches
  • Double-digit dig totals for Aviles (16), Rodriguez (14), Jenna Jones (12), Gatta (11)
  • Teiya Alagar added nine digs
  • 23 kills for Rodriguez and 15 for Matthews, both match-leading
  • Three blocks for Raghen Walker


What's Next?

North Park (13-4, 2-1 CCIW) steps out of conference action on Friday, September 30, for a match against Kalamazoo. The home match will begin at 7 PM CDT.


Print Friendly Version