Game Time...No.14 Northwestern College will host Buena Vista for a non-conference volleyball match on Wednesday night, Sept. 6 at the Bultman Center. First serve is scheduled for 7:30pm. Northwestern has won five straight matches and is 8-1 on the year. Buena Vista brings a 1-3 record into Wenesday night's match-up. Follow the match live, courtesy of the NWC Webcast, at the following link: Webcast. 

There is no junior varsity match this evening.

All-Time...The Red Raiders are 6-0 all-time against Buena Vista, dating back to their first ever match-up in 1989. Northwestern swept the Beavers in their last match-up, 25-12, 25-19, 25-14, played at the Bultman Center in 2014.

Scouting Reports...

    Buena Vista Beavers: 1-3     Head Coach: Lori Slight (7th year)

Affiliated with the NCAA Division III and members of the Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, Buena Vista comes into Wednesday night's match-up with a 1-3 record, playing all four matches at the Kathryne Pals Legacy Tournament in St. Paul, Minn. The Beavers picked up their lone win against St. Scholastica (Minn.) and lost to Wisconsin-Stevens Point, Concordia-Moorhead and Northwestern of St. Paul. 

Formerly a high school coach at both Sioux City Heelan and Creston, Slight is in her seventh season as the head of the Beavers volleyball program. She returns four starters and nine players from a 2016 team that finished tied for fifth in the IIAC with a 4-4 record, 14-14 overall. They lost to Coe in the conference tournament quarterfinals but finished the season with a .500 or better record for the third straight year. Buena Vista was picked to finish sixth out of nine teams in the IIAC preseason poll.

Buena Vista is hitting .135, putting down 11.07 kills per set this season. Opponents have a 31-23 advantage in blocks against BVU but the Beavers have the edge in ace serves, 30-23. 

Senior Jade Schaap, a three-time all-conference selection, is the top hitter for BVU, averaging four kills per set and hitting .170 as one of the outside hitters. Ali Grein puts down 2.5 kills per set and Serena Sandvig leads the team in blocks with  14. Summer Goss lofts up nearly eight assists per set as the team's setter and Kylie Roe leads the backrow with five digs per set. 

    No. 14 Northwestern Red Raiders: 8-1   Head Coach: Kyle Van Den Bosch (13th year)

The Red Raiders have won five straight matches and improved to 8-1 on the season. Since dropping a five-setter to then-No.9 Corban (Ore.), Northwestern has wins over Dakota State, University of Mary, Bethany, Chadron State and York. They dropped one spot in the NAIA Coaches' poll to 14th, one of six teams from the Great Plains Athletic Conference (GPAC) in the top 25 this week.

Northwestern is hitting .340, putting down 14 kills per set. They hold the advantage in aces (95-42) and blocks (63.5-28.5). Anna Kiel, the current GPAC player of the week, averages 3.8 kills and one block per set while hitting .459 as one of the team's middle hitters. Lauryn Hilger puts down 2.7 kills and averages 3.1 digs per set and both Makenzie Fink and A.J. Horstman average more than two kills per set. Lacey Waker directs the Red Raider offense as setter and lofts up 11.6 assists. Karsyn Winterfeld leads the team with 32 aces, second most in the NAIA.

Up Next...Northwestern will play in the Clarke Invite this weekend.