Yancy Paces Broncos In Sweep Over NIU

DEKALB, Ill. - The Western Michigan volleyball team weathered an impressive offensive assault from Northern Illinois in the first set, and the Broncos recorded an impressive road sweep with a 3-0 (25-23, 25-22, 25-21) win over the Huskies at Victor E. Court on Thursday. With the win, the Broncos improve to 11-6 on the season, 4-1 in the Mid-American Conference.

The Broncos broke what had been a recent jinx in DeKalb, recording their first road win against the Huskies since October 1, 2009. The Broncos controlled the tempo of the match from the service line, recording six aces and forcing the Huskies into a variety of difficult possessions; WMU hit .273 as a team but held the Huskies to just a .222 hitting percentage.

Freshman middle blocker Stephenee Yancy paced the Broncos with 12 kills on 16 swings, committing just two errors for a .625 hitting percentage. Terin Norris had 35 assists, and Kaycee Acree finished with a team-high 11 digs.

The Broncos and Huskies traded points throughout the first set, though WMU was able take a small lead late and make it stand up. WMU trailed 15-12 midway through the set but tied things up at 15-15 with a service ace from Norris; Norris recorded an ace on the subsequent play to give the Broncos a 17-16 lead.The Broncos took the lead for good on an NIU service error to make it 19-18, and an additional error from the Huskies gave the Broncos a two-point edge. The Huskies tied the set at 23-23, but Yancy recorded a kill to force set point, and the Broncos won the set on an NIU attack error.

The Broncos utilized a big run in the middle of the second set to truly put the stranglehold on the match, using an 8-0 tear to control the match. The Broncos forced NIU errors on four of six points take a 14-10 lead, and Ali Gossen notched a kill to make it 15-10. Jessica Brown recorded a solo block to cap the run, giving the Broncos a 17-10 lead in the set. The Huskies would push back but never got closer than two points from the Broncos; Gossen quelled the Huskies' rally with a kill to take the set 25-22.

The third set was tight early on, with the teams trading points until Brown broke the streak with a kill. Norris recorded a tip kill to make it 16-13 and force an NIU timeout, and the Broncos' lead reached 20-15 when Yancy notched a solo block to control the set. Carlee Berland recorded the match-winning kill with a cross court shot to take the set 25-21.