Anna Kiel put down a match-high 19 kills in leading No.3 Northwestern to a 3-0 sweep (25-15, 25-15, 25-19) over 21st-ranked Morningside tonight at the Bultman Center. 

Northwestern earned its 17th straight win and improved to 7-0 in the GPAC, 20-1 overall. Morningside had its seven-match win streak snapped and drops to 6-3 in the conference, 14-8 overall. 

Kiel, the reigning GPAC and NAIA Attacker of the Week, totaled 19 kills in 29 attempts, hitting .655 for the match. The sophomore also put down four blocks and totaled three digs and one ace serve. A.J. Horstman added 11 kills, hitting .364 for the Red Raiders, and Lacey Wacker lofted up 38 assists in leading a Red Raider offense that hit .383 for the match. 

Red Raiders Dominate At Net In First Set Win

Northwestern came out firing in the first set, hitting 52%, and totaling 17 kills in 27 attempts against just three errors. Leading by two (9-7), a 5-0 Northwestern run, behind the serving of Wacker, pushed the lead to seven and the Red Raiders cruised to the 25-15 win. Kiel totaled six kills in the first set while Horstman and Lauryn Hilger put down four and three kills, respectively.

Northwestern Pulls Away Late in Set Two

Morningside opened the second set with a 10-4 lead, getting kills from Ashley Vande Stouwe (2) and Krista Zenk. Northwestern came back with a 4-0 run, served by Wacker, getting kills by both Horstman and Makenzie Fink, to make it a two-point game (10-8). Tied at 11, Northwestern closed with a 14-4 run, scoring nine of the final 11 points, to earn a 25-15 win.

Red Raiders Hold Lead From Start to Finish In Final Set

The hosts began the third set with an 8-3 run, taking advantage of a pair of ace serves by Karsyn Winterfeld and hitting errors against the Mustangs. Northwestern extended the lead out to eight (19-11) following consecutive kills by Kiel and the Red Raiders were able to sideout the Mustangs for the 25-19 win.

By the Numbers...

Northwestern outhit the Mustangs in every set, hitting .383 for the match compared to .151 by Morningside

The Red Raiders totaled six ace serves, led by Karsyn Winterfeld with three, moving her NAIA-leading total to 63 on the season; Winterfeld has at least one ace in ever match this season. 

Kiel totaled a match-high four blocks as Northwestern held the edge at the net, 6-4; both Horstman and Josie Blankespoor totaled two blocks each

Kiel has hit for double figures in 17 matches; Horstman leads the team with 19 matches with 10+ kills

Lauryn Hilger and Winterfeld led the backrow with 12 digs each; both players now have 10 matches with double figures in digs

Krista Zenk led Morningside with 11 kills and Jenn Buyert added six.