Sept. 19, 2008
2008 Northwestern Volleyball Statistics 
Box Score
EVANSTON, Ill. -- Four Wildcats recorded double-digit kills, led by 17 from senior Chelsy Hyser (Belvidere, Ill./Belvidere) as Northwestern once again rallied from a 2-1 deficit to defeat Virginia 3-2 (25-15, 23-25, 17-25, 25-15, 15-13) at the Wildcat Classic at Welsh-Ryan Arena. The Wildcats go 2-0 on the first day of their host tournament and improve to 6-4 on the year.
Using its momentum off the come-from-behind victory over Georgetown earlier in the day, Northwestern jumped out to a 6-1 lead early on the Cavaliers (7-4), then used a 5-0 run late to cruise to the 25-15 opening set victory. Sophomore Brittani Gray (Cincinnati, Ohio/Sycamore) led the way with four kills while sophomore Elyse Glab (Chicago, Ill./Resurrection) dished out nine assists.
The `Cats once again pounced on the Cavaliers early in the second set, registering the first four points. But Virginia slowly gained the advantage, using a late run to claim its first lead at 23-22, then keeping NU at bay for the 25-23 win. Gray and freshman Alexandra Ayers (Playa del Rey, Calif./Marymount) paced the `Cats with four kills, while defensively junior Kate Nobilio (Johnsburg, Ill./Johnsburg) registered six digs.
Virginia carried that momentum over into the third set, distancing itself from Northwestern by as many as seven at 19-12. The Wildcats tried to mount a late rally, but were unable to get over the hump, falling 25-17.
From that point on, the match belonged to the `Cats as the Cavaliers never again lead through the final two sets. NU lead by as many as 10 midway through the fourth set before closing out Virginia in style, winning it 25-15. It pounced out to an 8-3 lead in the fifth set, and after the Cavs got to within two at 12-10 came up big down the stretch, as a pair of kills by Hyser sealed the victory for the Wildcats.
In addition to the season-high tying 17 kills from Hyser, Ayers added 15, sophomore Sabel Moffett (Temecula, Calif./Chapparal) notched 13 and Gray knocked down 12, while Moffett and Gray each had three blocks as well. Glab continued to show her consistency, recording a double-double with 46 assists and 14 digs, and Nobilio lead all players with 26 digs on the evening.
Earlier in the day, Northwestern staged a similar rally, trailing Georgetown 2-1 before taking the final two sets in its first match of the Wildcat Classic. Hyser again lead the team with her season-high 17 kills and added five blocks, while Gray and Ayers added 11 and 10 kills respectively.
The 27th annual Wildcat Classic wraps up Saturday, Sept. 20, beginning at 4 p.m. when Northwestern hosts fourth-ranked UCLA (8-1) in the Chipotle BIG GAME. Free Chipotle burritos will be given out to the first 200 fans through the doors, while fans who attend the Northwestern football game against Ohio only need to show their ticket stub and will receive free admission. The Classic closes out with Virginia and Georgetown squaring off at 6 p.m.