Game Time...12th-ranked Northwestern plays its final road match of the regular season as they head to Yankton, S.D. for a match-up against Mount Marty. First serve at the Cimpl Arena is scheduled for 8pm. Northwestern has won three straight matches and is tied with Midland for second in the current GPAC standings with a 10-2 record, 19-5 overall. Mount Marty has dropped nine consecutive matches and is 0-12 in GPAC play, 3-18 overall.

Follow the match live via the Mount Marty webcast at this link: Watch Now!

All-Time...Northwestern leads the all-time series 43-1 since the 1995 season, winning 35 consecutive matches against the Lancers. The Red Raiders swept Mount Marty earlier this season, 25-9, 25-21, 25-21. 

Last Time vs the Lancers...Lauryn Hilger put down a match-high 13 kills in leading then No.15 Northwestern to a home 3-0 sweep over Mount Marty in a conference match-up played Sept. 18 at the Bultman Center. 

Hilger hit for double figures for the 14th time this season, flooring 13 while hitting .579 in the three sets. Emily Van Ginkel added six kills in nine attacks to go with 1.5 blocks. Lacey Wacker put up 31 assists and Emily Strasser led all players with 12 digs. 

Red Raiders Overwhelm Lancers in First-Set Win

Northwestern hit 62% and limited Mount Marty to -3% in earning a 25-9 win in set one. The Red Raiders committed just one attack error and forced MMC into 11. Hilger put away three kills in the opening set.

Late Rally Gives Northwestern 2-0 Lead

Tied at seven, Mount Marty outscored the hosts 12-7 to force Coach Van Den Bosch to use both timeouts trailing 19-14. A successful attack by Van Ginkel began an 8-0 Northwestern run as the Red Raiders surged ahead 22-19. The teams traded points thereafter and kills by Hilger and Bekah Horstman put the Red Raiders on top 25-21.

Northwestern Holds Off Lancers To Complete Sweep

The Red Raiders held a slight lead early and pushed it out to four, 14-10, to force a Mount Marty timeout. The Lancers came back with a 7-2 run, taking a brief lead, until a kill by Van Ginkel put Northwestern in front for good at 20-19. Wacker, Hilger and Horstman put down a kill in the closing moments to clinch it for the Red Raiders.

By the Numbers...

Northwestern hit 37% for the match and had a 6-1 advantage in blocking; Mount Marty hit 8%.

Scouting Reports...

    Mount Marty Lancers: 0-12 (GPAC), 3-18 overall            Head Coach: Frank Hebenstreit (4th year)

Since defeating Central Christian (Kan.) 3-0 on Sept. 15, Mount Marty has dropped nine straight matches, seven to GPAC teams during that stretch. They are currently 12th in the GPAC standings with an 0-12 record, 3-18 overall. They have wins over Dickinson State and Mayville State, in addition to their victory over Central Christian.

Hebenstreit is in his fourth year as the head coach of the Lancers, coming over after a successful 18-year stint as the head coach at Norfolk High School. He returns five starters and 10 players from a 2017 team that finished in 10th place in the GPAC with a 1-15 record, 9-19 overall. They were picked to finish 12th in the GPAC preseason coaches' poll.

    By the Numbers (Conference Rank / NAIA rank-if top 10)
        Kills/Game: 9.2 (12th)
        Hitting %: .083 (12th)
        Aces: 92 (11th)
        Digs/Set: 13.8 (10th)
        Blocks/Set: 1.4 (12th)

     Top Players (Conf / NAIA rank-if top 10)
        Elizabeth Watchorn (returning starter)  2.5 kills/set, .130%, 16 blocks, 3.2 digs/set, 24 aces (6th)
        Mikaela Ahrendt (returning starter)  1.9 kills/set, 42 blocks
        Caitlin Dirks  1.6 kills/set, 46 blocks
        Maura Lysne (All-Conference) 4.7 digs/set 
        Alex Bargstadt  4.0 assists/set, 1.9 digs/set

#12 Northwestern College Red Raiders:  10-2 (3rd GPAC), 19-5 overall        Head Coach: Kyle Van Den Bosch (14th year)

With their 3-0 sweep over No.9 Midland last weekend, the Red Raiders are now tied with the Warriors for second in the current GPAC standings with a 10-2 record. 19-5 overall. They have won three straight matches heading into Wednesday night's showdown and have four matches left in the regular season. A win Wednesday night would give the Red Raiders 20-wins for the season, the 12th time that NWC has earned 20 win under head coach Kyle Van Den Bosch.

By the Numbers (Conference Rank / NAIA rank-if top 10)
        Kills/Game: 14.1 (1st / 2nd)
        Hitting %: .280% (1st / 6th)
        Aces: 150 (1st)
        Digs/Set: 13.8 (10th)
        Blocks/Set: 2.1 (7th)

     Top Players (Conf / NAIA rank-if top 10)
        Lauryn Hilger (3x all-conference)  4.6 kills/set (1st / 3rd), 37 aces (1st), 2.9 digs/set
        Makenzie Fink (All-Conference)  2.6 kills/set, .259%, 28 aces (4th), 
        Josie Blankespoor (All-Conference) 2.4 kills/set, .218%, 29 blocks
        Emily Van Ginkel  1.8 kills/set, .255%, 63 blocks
        Bekah Horstman  1.5 kills/set, .341%, 82 blocks
        Lacey Wacker (All-Conference / GPAC Freshman of Year)  11.6 assists/set (1st /1st), 19 aces, 2 digs/set
        Emily Strasser  27 aces (8th), 3.8 digs/set (7th)

Other Numbers of Note..
Northwestern has floored more kills than its opponent in all but one match

Red Raiders have hit better than their opponent in 19 of 24 matches

Van Den Bosch's squad has served more aces than opponent in all but seven matches

Lauryn Hilger leads the Red Raiders with 22 matches in double figure kills; Hilger has 11 double-doubles

Makenzie Fink has eight matches with double figure kills; Josie Blankespoor has hit for double figures in seven matches, six of the last eight

Emily Strasser has recorded 10+ digs in 16 matches

Both Emily Van Ginkel and Bekah Horstman have hit for double figures in two matches each