ORANGE CITY, Iowa – The No. 21-ranked Northwestern College volleyball team (17-10, 9-7 GPAC) is set to play host to the Cougars of Indiana University Kokomo (28-8, 16-1 RSC) on Saturday, November 20 in the Opening Round of the 2021 National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) Women's Volleyball Championship.
 
"This is an exciting time of year to be playing and practicing volleyball! We have played a tough schedule all year and we were excited the selection committee awarded us an opportunity to be in this tournament," said head coach Kyle Van Den Bosch.
 
On paper, the Raiders and the Cougars are two evenly matched teams. IU Kokomo holds the slight edge on team hitting percentage (.248-.227), but the Raiders hold the slight edge in digs/set (16.0-15.4) and blocks per set (2.4-2.0). Assists and services aces sit practically even around 11 and 2, respectively.
 
"Like any volleyball match, the team that serves well and passes well gives themselves a chance to win," said Van Den Bosch. "It will be a fun and exciting match to be a part of!"

Northwestern Red Raiders
The Raiders enter the national tournament from the toughest volleyball conference in the NAIA in the Great Plains Athletic Conference (GPAC), as the GPAC saw seven teams earn berths into this year's field of 48. All seven GPAC schools were selected as Opening Round hosts by the selection committee.
 
The Raiders have played a national-tournament-filled schedule all season long in the GPAC, but with non-conference play as well to best prepare them for this opportunity. Northwestern sits with a 2-9 record against teams in the tournament field, seven of those matches in the tough GPAC. Five of those losses were in five set thrillers as the Raiders have been battle tested all season long to be the best prepared for the national tournament.
 
"We are excited to be back in the NAIA National Tournament with this team," notes Van Den Bosch. "For quite a few of the girls this will be their first season with on-court playing time."
 
Led by First Team All-Conference performers in Alysen Dexter (Fr., Urbandale, Iowa/Des Moines Christian) and Bekah Horstman (Sr., Pella, Iowa/Pella Christian), the Raider offense has two major threats at the net. Dexter – the GPAC Freshman of the Year – leads the team with 367 kills heading into Saturday night. Horstman is second on the team with 284 kills from her middle hitter position, hitting a team-best .340. Katie Peters (Jr., Le Mars, Iowa/Gehlen Catholic) and Macay Van't Hul (So., Rock Valley, Iowa/Western Christian) also have 100+ kills each on the season at 140 and 144, respectively.
 
Jadeyn Schutt (Jr., Orange City, Iowa/MOC-Floyd Valley) has 616 assists on the season to lead the team, as Olivia Granstra (So., Sheldon, Iowa/Western Christian) follows with 401 assists on the year. Schutt also leads the team with 43 service aces, as Strasser (35) and Granstra (30) both eclipsed 30 mark.
 
Defensively, Horstman has been a menace at the net for opponents with 123 blocks on the season, with a team-high 22 solo blocks. Her efforts at the net this season has earned her national recognition with a NAIA Defensive Player of the Week honor to her name this season. Senior libero Emily Strasser (Sioux Falls, S.D./Sioux Falls Christian) has paced the Raider backline with 463 digs in 100 sets this season. Three other Raiders have eclipsed the 200+ dig mark on the season in Schutt, Dexter, and Granstra.
 
IU Kokomo Cougars
The Raiders will play host to the Cougars of Indiana University Kokomo (28-8, 16-1 RSC) out of the River States Conference (RSC). The Cougars earned an automatic bid to the national tournament after winning the RSC conference tournament with three-straight three set victories. The conference tournament title marks the fourth-straight for IU Kokomo.
 
The Cougars have played eight matches this season against teams in this year's national field, holding a record of 3-5 in those matches. They have won the last two matches, against fellow RSC conference foe Midway (Ky.), both being in straight sets on Oct. 30 and Nov. 13.
 
IU Kokomo has three athletes that have at least 200 kills on the season, led by fifth-year senior Erinn Adam with 364, while also hitting at a phenomenal percentage of .383 heading into the Opening Round. Lorelei Porter and Sidney Gerig have 221 and 254 kills, respectively; as the Cougar offense averages 12.7 kills per set. The main two setters in the Cougar rotation include Kaley Lyons (team-leading 704 assists) and Kendal Williams (584 assists).
 
Alyvia Smith paces the IU Kokomo defense with 554 digs on the year, followed by Lyons and Alexa Roberts who both have north of 200 digs. Adam is a force to be reckoned with at the net as well from the defensive side withi 25 solo blocks to her name, and a total of 143 blocks on the season.
 
"We know any opponent you get in a national tournament is a worthy opponent, and IU Kokomo is no exception," said Van Den Bosch on IU Kokomo. "They won their conference regular season and conference tournament so we know they are a good team."
 
Ticket Information
All spectators, including Northwestern and IU Kokomo students, will be charged to enter the Bultman Center for this NAIA national tournament event. The prices are set at $8 for adults and $3 dollars for all students (K-12 or college). School IDs must be shown by college students to get the $3 student pricing.

Masks are REQUIRED for everyone inside the Bultman Center, per NAIA National Championship protocols.

The winner of the match will advance to the final site of the 2021 NAIA Women's Volleyball Championship at the Tyson Events Center in Sioux City, Iowa. The final site dates are set for November 30 through December 4.