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Women's Volleyball NWC Athletic Communications

NWC to Host the College of the Ozarks for NAIA Opening Round

The Red Raiders look for their fourth-straight NAIA Opening Round win

ORANGE CITY, Iowa – For the fourth-straight season the top-ranked Northwestern College volleyball team (26-2, 14-2 GPAC) will host an Opening Round match of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) national tournament. Earning the top-overall seed in this year's tournament, the Red Raiders will play host to the Bobcats of the College of the Ozarks (Mo.) (21-11) at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday, November 18 inside the Bultman Center.
 
SATURDAY'S THEME WILL BE A RED OUT INSIDE THE BULTMAN CENTER

HOW THEY GOT HERE
Northwestern won their first Great Plains Athletic Conference (GPAC) tournament title since 2014 with a thrilling five-set win over No. 4-ranked Concordia (Neb.) this past Saturday inside an electric Bultman Center. Junior Jazlin De Haan (Orange City, Iowa) led the match with her 27 kills on the night, surpassing 400 kills on the season. Zavyr Metzger (So., Larchwood, Iowa) recorded her fifth double-digit blocking match of the season with her match-high 10, while Macay Van't Hul (Jr., Rock Valley, Iowa) added nine. Liv Reitsma (So., Papillion, Neb.) paced the team with her 31 assists and Olivia Granstra (Jr., Sheldon, Iowa) had 34 digs. The Red Raiders held the GPAC-leading and NAIA's seventh-best hitting percentage squad to just a .127 percentage in the championship match in the defensive battle.

Hailing from the Continental Athletic Conference (CAC) – the NAIA's association for independent institutions – the College of the Ozarks earned an automatic bid to the NAIA tournament with a 21-11 record after winning the Continental Athletic Conference tournament on November 11 in Temple Terrace, Florida. The Bobcats went a perfect 3-0 in pool play with wins over Florida College (3-0), Haskell Indian Nations University (Kan.) (3-2), and Florida National University (3-0). College of the Ozarks then met Haskell again in the CAC championship match on November 11. Once again, the match between the two teams went to five sets, as the Bobcats prevailed 16-14 in the final set.

NORTHWESTERN NOTABLES
  • This season marks the fourth-straight Opening Round hosting bid for the Red Raiders.
  • NWC is making their 19th appearance in the NAIA tournament.
  • The Red Raiders enter the NAIA tournament on a 12-game win streak.
  • NWC had eight GPAC All-Conference honorees; highlighted by three major awards – Player of the Year (Jazlin De Haan), Co-Defensive Player of the Year (Zavyr Metzger), and Coach of the Year (Kyle Van Den Bosch).
  • NWC leads the NAIA in blocks per set as a team (3.53), while Zavyr Metzger leads all NAIA individuals with her 2.00 blocks per set mark.
  • Metzger continues to lead all four-year collegiate volleyball divisions (NCAA DI, DII, DIII, NAIA, NCCAA DI, DII) in blocks per set.
  • October was a phenomenal month for the Red Raiders, as they blocked at an impressive clip of 3.74 blocks per set; the highest of the three full months of the season (Aug., 2.80; Sept., 3.62).
  • Jazlin De Haan leads the GPAC in kills per set (4.74); that mark sits SECOND in the NAIA.
  • NWC looks for their 12th home win of the year on Saturday, in the final home match of the season regarless of result.
  • Northwestern has eight NAIA top-25 wins this season (8-2, .800 win%).
  • The Red Raiders completed two undefeated months this season: August (5-0) and October (8-0).
  • NWC's 22 sweeps sits fifth in program history.
  • The Red Raiders sit second in the GPAC in hitting percentage (.229).
  • Olivia Granstra continues to sit second in the league in digs/set at 5.63.
  • Alysen Dexter leads the GPAC in service aces (49) and sits T16th in the NAIA in aces per set (0.53).
SCOUTING THE BOBCATS
  • A trio of Bobcats have 200+ kills this season, led by Bri Linehan (So., OH/RS) with 279 (2.45/set).
  • The Bobcats have 187 blocks this season (1.67 per set).
  • Kamryn Link leads the team with her 38 service aces.
  • Mica Caldwell (Jr., DS) paces the team with her 733 digs on the year (6.43/set); the digs per set mark sits FOURTH in the NAIA.
RED RAIDERS IN THE NAIA TOURNAMENT
  • The Red Raiders hold a 39-31 (.557) record in the national tournament.
  • Northwestern has made seven appearances to the NAIA Quarterfinals, six have been done by Van Den Bosch at the helm.
  • VDB has led NWC now to 13 national tournament appearances and seven-straight.
GPAC POSTSEASON HONORS TICKET INFORMATION
Admission will be charged for admission into the Bultman Center. There is not an advance ticketing option, all tickets are sold at the gate.

Adults will be charged $10, K-College students will be charged $5, and children under the Kindergarten age will have no charge. All faculty and staff at GPAC schools will be required to pay for entry, per the conference office.

THE FIRST 150 STUDENTS TO THE MATCH WILL RECEIVE FREE ADMISSION AND A THE RAIDER WAY T-SHIRT.
Only NAIA passes will be accepted at the gate, no institutional passes will be accepted.

GAME INFORMATION
Saturday's match will be held inside the Bultman Center on the campus of Northwestern College. For live stream, match notes, and live stats, visit nwcraiders.com or navigate to the links above.

Both teams have clinched automatic bids from the GPAC for the 2023 NAIA national tournament, by way of Northwestern earning the top-seed in the GPAC tournament and with both Concordia and Northwestern making the GPAC Championship match.

Don't forget to follow Northwestern College Athletics on Facebook @nwcraiders, Twitter @nwcraiders, and Instagram @nwcraiders! #RaidersStandOut
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Players Mentioned

Jazlin Douma

#13 Jazlin Douma

OH
5' 11"
Junior
Alysen Dexter

#11 Alysen Dexter

OH
6' 0"
Junior
Olivia Granstra

#4 Olivia Granstra

DS
5' 7"
Junior
Zavyr Metzger

#10 Zavyr Metzger

MH
6' 1"
Sophomore
Liv Reitsma

#9 Liv Reitsma

S
5' 8"
Sophomore
Savonne Sterk

#16 Savonne Sterk

RS
5' 9"
Junior
Macay Van

#14 Macay Van't Hul

MH
6' 1"
Junior
Jori Hajek

#2 Jori Hajek

OH/DS
5' 5"
Junior

Players Mentioned

Jazlin Douma

#13 Jazlin Douma

5' 11"
Junior
OH
Alysen Dexter

#11 Alysen Dexter

6' 0"
Junior
OH
Olivia Granstra

#4 Olivia Granstra

5' 7"
Junior
DS
Zavyr Metzger

#10 Zavyr Metzger

6' 1"
Sophomore
MH
Liv Reitsma

#9 Liv Reitsma

5' 8"
Sophomore
S
Savonne Sterk

#16 Savonne Sterk

5' 9"
Junior
RS
Macay Van

#14 Macay Van't Hul

6' 1"
Junior
MH
Jori Hajek

#2 Jori Hajek

5' 5"
Junior
OH/DS