TUCSON, Ariz. – The Arizona Wildcats beat Northern Colorado in four sets (25-20, 27-25, 13-25, 25-18) on Thursday night in McKale Center to secure a spot in the NIVC Championship match.
For the second straight night, three of Arizona's players tallied 10 or more kills to lead the Cats to the championship match.
Jordan Wilson led the team with 15 kills and
Jaelyn Hodge had 13 kills.
Journey Tucker set a pair of career highs with 12 kills and a .632 hitting percentage.
The Cats won the first set, 25-20. Arizona hit .341 as a team and the defense had three blocks to hold the Bears to a .225 hitting percentage. Hodge led the offense with six kills and Wilson followed with four kills in the opening set. Tucker had two blocks and two kills to help the Cats. Arizona came from behind to take the lead at 11-10 and held Northern Colorado at bay the rest of the set.
Arizona took a 2-0 lead in the match after winning the second set, 27-25. In a back-and-forth set, the Cats were able to win the final three points to win in extra points. Tucker and Wilson both had four kills to lead the attack while
Carlie Cisneros and Hodge tallied three kills each. Tucker led the Cats with an .800 clip while also recording two blocks to help Arizona win the set.
Northern Colorado won the third set, 25-13, to force a fourth set. The Bears came out strong, recording a.571 hitting percentage as a team and serving three aces. Wilson had four kills and hit .375 for the Cats, but Arizona did not record a block or an ace in the set.
Arizona won the fourth set, 25-18, to secure a berth to the NIVC Championship match. Five Wildcats recorded kills in the set to help Arizona outlast Northern Colorado. Tucker had four kills and hit .571 to lead the offense. Three Cats – Hodge, Johnson, and Wilson – had three kills each while Cisneros added a pair of kills to help Arizona win the match.
The Wildcats will take on the winner of Bowling Green vs. St. John's in the championship match of the NIVC. More information about the championship match will be released on Saturday.
