The Student News Site of Northern Michigan University

The North Wind

The North Wind

The North Wind

Meet the Staff
Amelia Kashian
Amelia Kashian
Features Editor

Being passionate is one of the best parts of being human, and I am glad that writing has helped me recognize that. I have been writing stories since I was a little girl, and over...

The North Wind Editorial Sessions
About us

The North Wind is an independent student publication serving the Northern Michigan University community. It is partially funded by the Student Activity Fee. The North Wind digital paper is published daily during the fall and winter semesters except on university holidays and during exam weeks. The North Wind Board of Directors is composed of representatives of the student body, faculty, administration and area media.

PROFILE — Katie Buhrmann is a 2022 alum of NMU and the executive administrative assistant in NMUs Office of Institutional Effectiveness. She recently self-published her first book of poetry. Photo courtesy of Katie Buhrmann
Alumni Katie Buhrmann explores South Korea through language
Katarina RothhornMarch 28, 2024

’Cats Volleyball hits the road before hosting Tech

Volleyball team looks to ride two-game win streak

The volleyball team will face three competitors on the road this weekend, including the Cedarville Jackets, the Lake Erie Storm and the Ashland Eagles before returning home to host rival Michigan Tech at 6 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 23 at Vandament Arena.

AV_Volleyball2

NMU is riding a two game win streak, after earning a pair of road wins last weekend.

The ’Cats won the first two GLIAC matches of the season giving them an overall 2-4 record. The first win against Northwood Friday, Sept. 13 ended after a five-set match.     Freshman libero/setter Meghan Seymour ended the match with an overall 29 kills.

Story continues below advertisement

Junior libero/defensive specialist Alex Berger finished with a game high of 28 digs.

Northwood University took the first two sets at 25-22 and 27-25. NMU won the next three with end scores of 26-24, 29-27 and 15-6. In the fourth set the teams kept the game tied from points 23 to 27.

Berger and sophomore right side hitter Alex Larsen ended the streak with a kill and ace to win the match.

The ’Cats won their second match over LSSU, 3-0 on Saturday, Sept. 13 in Sault Ste. Marie, Mich. with scores 25-21, 25-13 and 25-15.

Berger ended the game with a high of 16 digs.

Freshman redshirt Blair Zenner said the girls put a lot of effort into their game.

“We had a really strong serving that’s came and picked it up,” Zenner said. “I think the energy both on the court and off the court really helped pull through in both of our matches. As a team we just want to keep improving each game and come back with more energy and fight, and do what we know how to do.”

NMU will travel to Ohio Thursday, Sept. 18 where they will face Cedarville on Thursday, Sept. 18 at Callan Athletic Center,   Lake Erie Friday, Sept.19 at Jerome T. Osborne Family Athletic and Wellness Center, and Ashland University, Saturday, Sept. 20 at  Kates Gymnasium. Cedarville with a current record of 3-5 will play the ’Cats for the first time.

Senior outside hitter Hannah Wagner will be playing her fourth year for the Yellow Jackets.

Wagner is team captain and held the team-high in kills last season with 371 overall. Wagner also recorded a season-high 18 kills at the Ashland Invitational.

NMU defeated the Lake Erie Storm last season 3-0 Friday, Sept. 27 at Vandament Arena. The Storm is currently 2-5 overall and 0-2 in the conference.

Freshman setter Jami Hoogeboom said the team will take every match serious while enjoying the season.

“Our goal is to start out strong and be consistent throughout the match, we’re just going to focus on our side of the court and make sure that we stay disciplined and fight for every point no matter who is on the other side but it will be really fun,” Hoogeboom said. “We’re all building our confidence and getting there, pushing each other to be accountable for ourselves and each other I think that’s really building our confidence a lot. We have to fight every point at a time no matter if it’s in practice or in a game, and no matter who we’re playing.”

The ’Cats face Ashland Saturday, Sept. 19 in Ashland, Ohio. Last season the girls lost 3-2 against Ashland making it their first loss in the GLIAC conference.

Head Coach Dominic Yoder said the team plans to play strong this weekend.

“We’re doing a really good job blocking our left side attack, it’s definitely picked up a little bit and our middles were pretty dynamic offensively for us while blocking is really key for us right now,” Yoder said. “Our goal is to revenge the loss from last year. You know they’re a different team, we’re a different team, so we’re really wanting to take it one step at a time.

“Cedarville is first but we’ve got Ashland in the back of our minds we want to go down there and play with confidence and play at our ability to hopefully bring a win home with us. Last season against Ashland in the first set, the teams tied 12 times and repeated in the third set tying six times.”

Sophomore outside hitter Ali Cudworth lead the Eagles with 18 kills in the game. Cudworth ended her freshman season with the Eagles having 461 kills.

The Wildcats will host Michigan Tech Tuesday, Sept. 23 at Vandament Arena.

The ’Cats beat the Huskies last season 3-1 Tuesday, Nov. 5 at Vandament Arena.

Tech’s currently 1-4 after only defeating Bemidji State at the Keweenaw Classic Volleyball Tournament last Friday, Sept. 5 in Houghton. Michigan Tech is led by sophomore outside hitter Aubrey Ficek, who has 90.5 points on the season Ficek is averaging 3.6 points per set.

Last season, the Huskies finished 12 out of 18 in the GLIAC with a GLIAC record of 6-12, and 10-20 overall.

The Wildcats finished third with a 15-3 GLIAC record, 23-10 overall.

Yoder said the ’Cats will have a tough task against the Huskies.

“Our serving has always been a strength of our program so we’re continuing it this year and we averaged a little over two service aces per set so if we can force the other team out of system it gives our block a better chance to work easier,” Yoder said.

“Michigan Tech is going to be a tough one. They’re much improved from last year. They’ve got it going in the right direction, both of us beat Northwood well, so you know if that’s any key of their performance level right now they’re playing with a lot of confidence. We’re expecting a highly competitive match on Tuesday.”

More to Discover