GREEN BAY, Wis. --The Green Bay volleyball team got back in the win column with a five-set victory over the Northern Kentucky Norse Saturday at the Kress Center.

The win boosted the Phoenix record to 8-11 overall and 6-1 in HL action. GB is once again tied at the top of the league with Milwaukee.

The Phoenix offense was paced by Hannah Vanden Berg, who finished with 19 kills on the day while accumulating a hitting percentage of .286. Cora Behnke added 12 and Tiffany Paalman chipped in with 11 as part of balanced Green Bay attack.

Defensively, GB had three players reach double figures in digs, including Abby Gardner's career-high 27, 13 from Emma Johnson, and 10 more from Emma Best. Johnson also finished with 41 assists.

Abby Kanakry led the way for the Norse with 24 kills. Anna Burke was strong defensively, finishing with 27 digs.

HOW IT HAPPENED
SET 1 | Northern Kentucky controlled the first set, taking it by a score of 25-17. The Norse built a slight lead at 14-13 before extending their lead to 20-13 with a 6-0 run that would prove to be the difference. NKU was efficient in the set, finishing with a .333 attack hitting percentage. 
 
SET 2 | Green Bay bounced back to tie it up at one set apiece with a 25-16 win in set two. GB started the set up 8-2 and never looked back. The GB defense had a great performance in the frame, allowing NKU to hit just .026. The Green Bay offense also got a boost from three aces in the stanza.
 
SET 3 | The Norse grabbed the lead once again after taking the third set 25-18. NKU hitters got going once again in the third, as they finished with 16 kills on a .419 hitting percentage. 
 
SET 4 | GB responded in the fourth set once again, picking up a 25-22 win. Tied at 19, the Phoenix took advantage of three NKU attack errors as part of a 4-0 run that was decisive in the win. The GB front row was solid, finishing with three blocks in the set. Green Bay registered a .313 attack percentage with 14 kills.
 
SET 5 | GB dominated in set number five, winning 15-8. The Phoenix led from the jump and raced out to a 10-2 lead. Three of GB's 15 points were aces.

Kennedy hit 'em with the knuckle ball ??

S2 | GB(0) 14, NKU(1) 9 pic.twitter.com/9UqykBVBYX

— Green Bay Volleyball (@gbphoenixvb) October 7, 2023

GAME NOTES
» Green Bay slightly outhit the Norse .221 to .214.
» Ellie Kurpeikis had six blocks for the Phoenix.
» Gardner and Vanden Berg had a team-high three aces in the win.

ON THE HORIZON 
The Phoenix will hit the road next weekend for a pair of games. The weekend will start Friday at Cleveland State at 5 p.m. Following, the Green & White will travel up to Oakland for a 3 p.m. match. 
 
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