Sunday, October 4
Madison, Wis.
1 p.m. CT
Northwestern
at
Wisconsin
Northwestern Visits #19 Wisconsin on Sunday
10/3/2015 9:38:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
| NORTHWESTERN VOLLEYBALL: MATCH INFORMATION | |||||
| DATE | OPPONENT | TIME | LOCATION | BROADCAST | LIVE STATS |
| Sunday, October 4 | #19 Wisconsin | 1 p.m. | UW Fieldhouse (Madison, Wis.) | BTN Plus | GameTracker |
| Social: Twitter (@NUVBall and @NU_SportsLive) | Instagram (NUVBall) | Facebook Wildcats Weekly Release | |||||
EVANSTON, Ill. – Northwestern travels to Wisconsin on Sunday for the second of five consecutive matches versus top-20 opponents. The Wildcats (10-4, 2-1) face off against the No. 19 Wisconsin Badgers in the finale of a four-match road swing to begin conference play.
The match is scheduled to begin at 1 p.m. and will be streamed live via BTN Plus.
Sunday's match marks the only meeting between the two programs this season.
Three and Done
11 of Northwestern's 14 matches have gone only three sets in 2015. The Wildcats are 7-4 in those matches. Northwestern has won each of the three to go longer than three games, with two four-setters and a five-set win.
Double-Trouble
Northwestern sophomore setter Taylor Tashima has recorded five double-doubles already in the 2015 season. Each time, she has reached double digits in assists and digs. Tashima notched three in a row at the Holiday Inn University Plaza Invitational from Sept. 11-12 and tallied her second consecutive double-double in the Wildcats' last match at Minnesota. Outside hitter Kayla Morin picked up her first of the season in that match as well with 10 kills and 14 digs.
Serve's Up
Abbie Kraus has tallied at least one service ace in each of the past six matches. Her season high is four in the Wildcats' win vs. Milwaukee to cap the Wildcat Challenge. Kraus has served an ace in 12 of 14 matches this year and has a total of 20 on the season. She is tied for first in the Big Ten in total aces and is second in aces per set.
Fara Makes Immediate Impact
True freshman Rachael Fara earned her first career start at Minnesota on Wednesday night and turned in a solid performance. Fara hit .375 over the course of the match with nine kills. Her .375 mark was a match high among all players.j
Stifling Defense
Northwestern's defense at the net has been dominant so far in 2015. The Wildcats rank eighth in the Big Ten with opponents hitting only .172 against them. Eight times Northwestern has held the opposition to a less than .200 hitting clip. Minnesota was the latest team to struggle on the attack against the Wildcats, hitting only .180 during the match, including a measly .095 in the third set.
Where They Rank
Caroline Niedospial leads the Big Ten with 5.15 digs per set and is the only player in the conference averaging more than five per game. Niedospial holds a sizeable advantage over Valeria Leon of Ohio State, who averages 4.79 per game. The Northwestern senior ranks 21st among all D1 student-athletes in that category. Taylor Tashima is also among the best in the conference with 11.37 assists per set, good for fourth. She ranks 18th in the NCAA. Abbie Kraus has moved up to second in the Big Ten in service aces during six-match streak, and Maddie Slater recently moved into the top-five in the conference in hitting percentage with a .393 mark.
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Players Mentioned
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