KENOSHA, Wis. -- A 3-1 win over Carthage College on Wednesday night (25-18, 21-25, 25-19, 25-18) secured the first ever College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin (CCIW) title for No. 15 North Park women's volleyball. Head Coach Michael Sopocy and his staff have transformed the Vikings from a second-to-last place team three seasons ago into a squad that may very well become the first North Park women's team to obtain a perfect CCIW record.
The Vikings and Firebirds traded kills and a couple ball handling errors in the first set before three aces from junior outside hitter Adriana Rodriguez and kills by freshman middle blocker Meg Rothermel and junior opposite hitter Kharlie Simeona-French propelled NPU to a 14-6 lead. North Park extended this lead to 10 points on more kills from Rodriguez and Simeona-French, alongside quality service play from sophomore serving specialist Abby Ames, including an ace.
North Park captured the early momentum with a first set win, powered by five kills, three aces, and a .571 first-set attacking percentage from Rodriguez.
The Vikings took a step back in the second set as the Firebirds managed their best set of the night with a .286 hitting percentage and 13 kills compared to NPU's .075 and 10, their worst of the night.
However, things flipped in the third set when North Park boasted its best set of the night with a red-hot .324 hitting percentage and 14 kills while nearly holding Carthage even at .057. In that pivotal third set, Simeona-French paved the way with six kills and an eye-popping .750 hitting percentage while senior setter Christina Gatta assisted on 14 kills. Additionally, sophomore libero Carolina Aviles, Gatta, senior defensive specialist Teiya Alagar, senior setter Jenna Jones, Rodriguez, Ames, and Rothermel all teamed up for 15 digs in the set.
The final set of the night featured 10 tie scores and four lead changes as the Firebirds were relentless until the last seven or eight points, when the Vikings put them away. Rodriugez added seven more kills in this set, ending the evening with 18, while Gatta drove three aces and finished her night with five across four sets.
Quick Hits:
- Aces a plenty tonight with the Vikings picking up 10 off the backs of Gatta (5) and Rodriguez (4)
- 14th time this season where the Vikings have reached double-digit aces
- Six more blocks for Rothermel while Simeona-French and junior middle blocker Shamyia Collier added two each
- Alagar set a new career high in the title-grabbing match, digging out 20 attacks
- Carthage's Katie Rohe led the Firebirds with 13 kills while Leena Ajibola had four aces
- Aviles now has exactly 1,000 career digs
What's Next?
The Vikings close out the regular season at home against the Carroll Pioneers this Saturday, November 4, at 6:00 pm inside the North Park Gymnasium. Before the varsity match, the 2023 Viking senior class will be honored.
CCIW Tournament
North Park (22-6, 7-0 CCIW) gets to hang out and watch the quarterfinals take place on Tuesday, Nov. 7, before hosting the winner of #5 Augustana and #4 Illinois Wesleyan on Thursday, Nov. 9, at 7:00 pm.
