By JACLYN BURKE
Student Writer
After taking down the Savage Storm and falling to East Central, Northwestern volleyball looks forward to their matchup against Southwestern today at 7 p.m.
According to riderangersride.com, the Rangers defeated Southeastern Oklahoma State 3-2 Friday in Durant, Okla.
The Rangers claimed the first set 25-22 and set three, 25-16. The Savage Storm took set two, 25-21 and set four, 25-15. The Rangers were led to victory by a late play in the fifth set for a 3-2 match win.
After taking down the Savage Storm, the Red-and-Black went on the road to face conference foe East Central in Ada, Okla. on Saturday.
The Rangers were not as fortunate as the night before, as the Tigers took the match 3-1.
East Central won set one 25-16 and set two 25-23. The Rangers look to make a comeback in set three when they grabbed the set win 25-20. The Tigers were too much in set four though, as they took the set 25-19 and the match win.
Following the split weekend for the Rangers, win/loss wise, their next focus is rival Southwestern tonight.
This will be the second time these two teams has faced off this season. The Rangers fell to the Bulldogs, 0-3, on Sept. 24. Despite the loss, the ladies are ready to take on the Bulldogs for second time this season.
Korina Lillard, a senior from Brighton, Colo., said the Rangers are a different team than they were the first time they played Southwestern. “We are quicker, stronger and overall better,” she said. “Hopefully all of our hard work on the court and in the weight room will lead us to earning the win over them.”
Since the two rivals meet again this season, they may or may not know what to expect from the other team.
Fredrick Wagner, Ranger head coach, said, “We did some very good things in our first match-up and we just need to stay consistent throughout the entire match.”
From a player perspective, Lillard said, “They have one main hitter that they go to for their offense while we have multiple options which is what gives this Northwestern team so much dimension.”
Along with the match up against the Bulldogs being the last regular season game of the season, it will also be Senior Night.
Players that started playing at Northwestern as freshmen are Megan Hentschke, Korina Lillard and Kaydee Yukawa. “We also say farewell to seniors Ashanti Banks and Lachelle Purrier; this is the last opportunity for these 5 players to perform in front of the home crowd,” Wagner said.
Kaydee Yukawa, a senior from Honolulu, Hawaii, said she looks forward to playing all out on senior night, which is also the last game of the season.
The Ranger volleyball team take to the court at 7 p.m. against arch rival Southwestern at the Percefull Fieldhouse. This is a Red Riot game, so students are encouraged to wear red to support the Rangers.