Northern State did something it has never done to finish the regular season on a high note on Saturday afternoon.

The Wolves earned a 28-26, 25-15, 25-22 Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference sweep over No. 14 Minnesota-Duluth at Wachs Arena. It marked the first time in program history that the Wolves swept the season series against Duluth.

Northern coach Brent Aldridge said there were several positives that led to the win.

“I thought we did a really good job of digging volleyballs, but we pressured them, and they helped us with 30 hitting errors and we only had 18, so there’s 12 points right there,” Aldridge said. “I was really happy with our team.”

In the first set, Northern built multiple leads, including 8-3 and 21-15, but every time a lead seemed safe, Minnesota-Duluth climbed back into the set. The Wolves led 24-20 with just a set point left; however, the Bulldogs once again came back, tying the score at 24, sending the set to extra points. Northern finished the set with a pair of kills by Abby Brooks.

Wolves outside hitter Natalia Szybinska said staying in system played a big role in winning the opening set.

“I think being in the system (was key),” Szybinska said. “We were very calm and knew what we were doing. We used their mistakes to win.”

In set two, the Wolves went on a 9-0 run after the score was tied at 4-4, putting themselves in a comfortable position to go up two sets. But, much like the first set, the Bulldogs made a comeback, cutting the Northern lead down to 17-13. Aldridge called a timeout to regroup the team.

“What I wasn’t really happy about (was) we didn’t see their right side hitter coming inside,” Aldridge said. “She just kind of did what she wanted.”

After the timeout, the Wolves adjusted and finished the set on an 8-2 run, putting themselves in firm control, two sets to none.

Aldridge was impressed with his team’s ability to block the Bulldogs’ kill attempts.

“I thought we blocked the living crap out of them, really,” Aldridge said. “We had a ton of blocks in that set.”

Szybinska, who led the Wolves with 13 kills and six blocks, said the team enjoyed the second set.

“I think we had a little fun, especially with the block,” Szybinska said. “I think Duluth was trying very strongly to make some points. We made a lot of points with our blocking.”

The third set saw both teams trade leads at almost every point, with each team’s largest lead being by three points. Tied at 22-22, the Wolves finished off the set by collecting the final three points.

The Wolves, 19-8 on the season, will now prepare for the NSIC tournament. The Wolves enter the tourney as the fifth seed and play at St. Cloud State on Tuesday in the opening round.

Aldridge said he believes the team has the confidence to play well in the tournament.

“This is huge, I think, hopefully for the mental process that these guys are going through,” Aldridge said following the win over Duluth. “We’re good enough to beat anyone in this league, but we have to, one, believe it, and, two, have the confidence that we can go get it done.”

For a complete box score, click on the following link:

https://nsuwolves.com/sports/womens-volleyball/stats/2023/minnesota-duluth/boxscore/13209