Nov. 21, 2009

Box Score • Senior Night Photo Gallery

Northwestern vs. Iowa Box Score

2009 Northwestern Volleyball Statistics

EVANSTON, Ill. -- Behind a combined 32 kills from juniors Sabel Moffett (Temecula, Calif./Chapparal) and Naomi Johnson (Bloomington, Minn./Kennedy) and 21 digs from senior Kate Nobilio (Johnsburg, Ill./Johnsburg), Northwestern overpowered Iowa 25-15, 25-17, 25-15 on Senior Night at Welsh-Ryan Arena. The victory moves the Wildcats into sole possession of sixth place in the Big Ten standings, improving to 7-11 in the conference and 16-14 overall.

One night after a rousing victory over Wisconsin, the junior tandem struck again as Moffett knocked down 17 kills with a .538 hitting percentage, complimented by Johnson's 15 kills and .565 hitting percentage. The duo also combined for eight blocks on the night, led by Moffett's one solo block and four assisted.

As a team, Northwestern was firing on all cylinders against Iowa (12-18, 4-14 Big Ten), finishing with a .364 team hitting percentage compared to the Hawkeyes' .060. The Wildcats also held a 9-3 block advantage, a 42-21 assist edge and out-dug the Hawkeyes 38-23.

Junior Elyse Glab (Chicago, Ill./Resurrection) led all players with 37 assists while also knocking down five kills on six attempts for an .833 average and adding a pair of blocks. Redshirt freshman Kathryn Chrystal (Crystal Lake, Ill./Central) had four kills and two blocks while senior Ariel Baxterbeck (Menlo Park, Calif./Castilleja) and junior Brittani Gray (Cincinnati, Ohio/Sycamore) each added a pair of kills. Gray also posted four blocks on the night while Baxterbeck's six digs was second for the 'Cats.

Northwestern controlled the tempo from the opening serve of set one, notching six of the first seven points and never looked back. Behind six kills from Moffett, the Wildcats extended their lead to as many as 11 at 24-13 before settling in for the 25-15 victory. With sole possession of sixth-place in the Big Ten just 25 points away, Northwestern took care of business in set three, racing out to a 10-3 lead on Iowa and again didn't look back. The Wildcats pushed their advantage to 10 at 24-14, and would hold onto that edge by taking set three 25-15 and sending the seniors out in style.

Prior to the match, both Baxterbeck and Nobilio were honored on Senior Night. Baxterbeck ranks third on the team in kills (212) and is second in digs (255) in her best season as a Wildcat. With Nobilio's 21 digs on the night, she ups her season total to 490, needing just 10 more to become the first player in program history to record four 500-dig seasons. She also upped her career total to 2,155, leaving her 28 digs shy of moving into second-place all-time in Big Ten history.

With its NCAA tournament hopes still alive, Northwestern returns to the court at Welsh-Ryan Arena one last time in 2009, taking on in-state rival and fifth-ranked Illinois Wednesday, Nov. 25 in its home finale. The match against the Illini will be televised live on the Big Ten Network with the opening serve set for 7:05 p.m.