A Dominant Night for Chippewa Volleyball

MOUNT PLEASANT, Mich. -- Returning to Mount Pleasant following a four-game road trip, Central Michigan volleyball got a much-needed win in dominating fashion on Friday.

The Chippewas took on Northern Illinois, sweeping the Huskies 31-29, 25-19 and 25-15.

Coach Mike Gawlik was understandably happy with his team's effort in their return to McGuirk Arena after playing a handful of contests in enemy territory.

"It feels real good," Gawlik said. "We've been away for 7 of our 9 conference matches. I feel like my bags have been consistently packed for a long time. So it's nice to be back here and in front of our home fans. We were on a bit of a skid there - losing four in a row. We made a pretty significant adjustment to what we were doing and I thought our athletes did just a tremendous job locking into something that was unique and different and forced us to think outside the box. To see it be successful and have people perform at a high level is really encouraging."

On a night that it thoroughly outmatched its opponent, CMU held the advantage in nearly every statistical category. Perhaps the most important advantage was in kills, in which the Chippewas led 47-38. They also led in aces, blocks, assists and hitting percentage.

In fact, the only major category they did not lead in was digs - a testament to the offensive pressure they created.

Individual performances also shined in the winning effort. CMU has dealt with injuries on the season, which has led to increased opportunities across the roster. Now, the Chippewas are returning to health with sophomore outside Natalia Rejment reentering the lineup for the first time this season.

"Natalia is just such good experience for us," Gawlik said. "She played a very major role for us a year ago. Came back from the World Championships and was a little banged up. We had to be a little patient for her to be cleared to play. To have her back in our lineup gets some of that experience back to the floor. Yet what it provided, you look at the bright side of her being out is it has allowed other players to develop in her absence."

Gawlik also pointed to the absence of junior opposite Krystina Kasson. While it hurt to lose out on her production short-term, it allowed fellow junior opposite Linnea Willer the opportunity to contribute - which she did and continues to do at a high level.

Willer and Kasson led CMU in kills with 12 and 11 respectively. Of her 12 kills, Willer registered six of them in the first set, helping the Chippewas to a hard-fought win in their closest set of the match.

Other statistical leaders included Rejment with a pair of aces, as well as senior middle Elly Medendorp, who led the way in blocks with six and added seven kills of her own. Sophomore setter Claire Ammeraal led the assist category with 39, while junior libero Aly Gurtiza dug out 11 balls to lead the team.

CMU will return to action on Saturday (Oct. 21) to close out the two-game series with NIU. The match holds special meaning as the Autism Acceptance Game, aimed at creating a safe and inclusive environment for all fans. The match is scheduled to begin at 4 p.m. ET.

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Team Stats

Linnea Willer

Krystina Kasson

Elly Medendorp

Lauren Schrock

Players Mentioned

Claire Ammeraal

Aly Gurtiza

Krystina Kasson

Elly Medendorp

Natalia Rejment

Linnea Willer

Players Mentioned

Claire Ammeraal

Aly Gurtiza

Krystina Kasson

Elly Medendorp

Natalia Rejment

Linnea Willer