Things looked bleak for the Eastern Michigan University volleyball team at the end of the second set, trailing Northern Illinois 2-0 with the match being on the brink of moving into the third.
However, just like they had twice previously this season, the Eagles slowly but surely clawed their way back into the match, dominating the late stages of the third set to secure their first set win of the night and riding that momentum into coming out on top in the final two sets as well to secure victory.
The triumphant comeback from the Eagles marks the first time the squad has pulled off three reverse set sweeps in one season since the 2014 campaign. It was a total team win, with the offensive and defensive efforts both stepping up during the match's latter stages.
On the offensive side of things, Abby Stanford (Zanesville, Ohio/Tri Valley/Ashland) led the way with 18 kills and an above .500 hitting percentage on the night, while Kaili Doctor (Mars, Pennsylvania/Pine-Richland/North Carolina A&T State) wasn’t far behind with a .313 slugging percentage and 13 kills on the board.
Defensively, it was a total team effort from the Eagles, with plenty of digs on the stat sheet. Hannah Blaney (Saline, Michigan/Saline/Rhode Island) led the way with 18, Ava Siefke (Cincinnati, Ohio/Saint Ursula Academy) posted 14, while Ella Voorhees (Morgantown, West Virginia/Morgantown/Southern Mississippi) and Taylor Smith (Pewamo, Michigan/Pewamo-Westphalia) each posted ten digs in a double-double effort for both.
The comeback win marks the first for Eastern Michigan over Northern Illinois since the 2021 season; the Eagles to a 12-10 record this season with a 6-2 mark in MAC play, the most wins they’ve scored in the conference this decade.
Next up, Eastern Michigan faces another tough test going up against Western Michigan University, the defending MAC Regular Season and Tournament Champions. Tune into ESPN+ at 7:30 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 18, to catch all the action.
