MADISON, Wis. – The Edgewood College Eagles women’s volleyball squad advanced to the semifinals of the Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference (NACC) postseason with a 3-1 victory over Illinois Tech. They will host fourth-seeded Concordia Wisconsin Falcons in a NACC Tournament Semifinal battle at the Todd Wehr Edgedome.
THE BASICS
– No. 1 Edgewood College (21-10, 12-1 NACC) vs. No. 4 Concordia Wisconsin (15-13, 9-4 NACC)
– Madison, Wis. (Todd Wehr Edgedome)
– Thursday, November 9, 7:00 p.m.
– Live Links
EDGEWOOD COLLEGE ROSTER | EDGEWOOD COLLEGE SCHEDULE | EDGEWOOD COLLEGE STATS
CONCORDIA WISCONSIN ROSTER | CONCORDIA WISCONSIN SCHEDULE | CONCORDIA WISCONSIN STATS
2023 NACC WOMEN’S VOLLEYBALL TOURNAMENT PAGE
HOW THEY GOT HERE
– The Eagles hosted a white-hot Illinois Tech squad playing their best volleyball of the season Tuesday night, but prevailed in 3-1 (25-18, 28-26, 24-26, 25-16) fashion. Abigail Hoffmann earned her fifth triple-double of the year with 11 kills, 16 assists, and 12 digs, while Ashley Bruehlman put together a strong performance with 15 kills, a .333 hitting percentage, four aces, and 11 digs. Abbey Falk and Katie Borchert tallied seven and six blocks respectively. Anchoring the offense and the defense, Abbey Eivins recorded 16 assists and 13 digs.
– The Falcons swept past the fifth-seeded Muskies 3-0 (25-23, 25-18, 25-18) in an impressive quarterfinal display at home. They combined for 10 aces and eight blocks as a team with a .204 hitting percentage. Maycee Karpfinger earned 13 kills, four blocks, and three aces. Setter Mickenzie Benter also tallied three aces while running a smooth offense with 30 assists.
LAST MEETING
– The two squads met at the Edgedome earlier this season on October 7. After a dominant 25-15 first set by the Eagles followed by a 25-21 win, Concordia Wisconsin kept alive with a 29-27 set three. The visitors hung tough through all of frame four, but Edgewood College claimed a 25-23 win for a 3-1 match victory.
– Falk was relentless in the match, swinging for 10 kills and tying her career best with nine blocks. Bruehlman tallied 14 kills, 18 digs, and three aces, while Jennacy Wille dug 22 attacks. Karpfinger put together a strong performance for the Falcons with 16 kills, three aces, and four blocks. Benter earned 37 assists and Abby Proefrock 25 digs.
THE FIELD
– The other NACC Tournament Semifinal features the no. 2 Aurora Spartans hosting a showdown with the no. 3 St. Norbert Green Knights. The Spartans swept Benedictine while the Green Knights did the same to Marian in their respective first round matchups. Aurora won the regular season version of the matchup 3-0 (25-22, 30-28, 25-18) at home.
TOURNAMENT HISTORY
– The Eagles have advanced to back-to-back NACC Semifinals after earning the top seed for the first time since 2015.
– The Spartans won the 2022 edition of the NACC Tournament. Aurora has won every NACC Tournament since 2017 besides the 2020 season.
