GRAND FORKS, N.D. - Led by sophomore middle blocker Ronni Munkeby, North Dakota picked up its first Great West Conference win of the season with a sweep over NJIT. Munkeby, a Lisbon, N.D., native, recorded a team-high 10 kills on 15 swings for a .600 attack percentage. She also tallied five blocks, including one solo stop.
UND (13-4, 1-1 GWC) won the opening set 25-18, but not before the Highlanders (6-12, 1-2 GWC) put up a fight. Trailing 5-10, NJIT rallied from behind to knot the score at 14-14. After trading points, the Sioux broke a 16-16 tie and set out on a 9-2 run to take a 1-0 lead.
North Dakota took a 2-0 lead following a quick 25-10 victory in set two, and then completed the sweep with a 25-19 win in set three.
"We were a little shaky with our timing right out of the gate, but we got that under control," head coach Ashley Hardee said. "Defensively, I couldn't be happier. Putting up 13 blocks against this team is great."
Led by 10 blocks (one solo) from senior middle blocker Tia Russell (Brooklyn Park, Minn.), the Sioux out-blocked the Highlanders 13-3.
"We also had a great performance from the service line," Hardee said. "Our serving skills are what give us the ability to go on some pretty good runs, and the ability to go on the runs will be even more important as we head down the final stretch."
UND recorded nine aces on the night, including two each from senior outside hitter Devin Trefz (Bagley, Minn.), redshirt freshman setter Nikki Husfeldt (Andover, Minn.), and sophomore defensive specialist Erica Turner (Andover, Minn.).
UND's scattered attack had all but four players in on the kill. In addition to Munkeby's 10, sophomore middle blocker Lisa Parlich (Delavan, Wis.) had nine kills and Russell added another six. Husfeldt recorded a team-high 35 assists.
The Sioux out-hit the Highlanders .243-.009.
Senior libero Taylor Bohannon (Inver Grove Heights, Minn.) finished with 13 digs. Also in double-figures with 10 digs apiece were Husfeldt and freshman outside hitter Lexi Robinson (Ramsey, Minn.).
The Fighting Sioux will return to 'The Betty' on Saturday afternoon when they host Chicago State in the second match of their five-day, three-match homestand. The Sioux and the Cougars will kick things off at 5 p.m.
- Go Sioux -
