No. 9 Kentucky Volleyball Downs NKU in Straight Sets in Home Opener Inside Newly-Remodeled Memorial

The building might’ve been new when the No. 9 Kentucky volleyball team walked onto the court for Friday night’s match against Northern Kentucky, but the outcome proved to be a familiar one as the Cats cruised to a 3-0 sweep (25-13, 25-9, 25- ) over the Norse inside the newly-renovated Memorial Coliseum. 

After the game, UK head coach Craig Skinner expressed a tremendous amount of gratitude to be back on the floor inside Memorial to play in front of the Big Blue Nation.  

“Thankful for the opportunity for our players to play in a venue like this the way it has been constructed and remodeled,” Skinner said. “Playing ways to honor the past but also look forward to the future. Just a special chance for us tonight.”

In front of a crowd of 3,516, Kentucky looked more than ready to return to the home floor of Memorial for the first time since the 2022 volleyball season. The Cats came out sharp from the jump and totaled 17 team kills on an impressive .333 clip in the first frame alone. 

Offensively, the Cats showed flashes of their offensive ability all night long, as they finished the match with 39 kills on an impressive .350 clip. Eight Wildcats totaled at least three kills on the evening, led by 8 from sophomore Brooklyn DeLeye. Megan Wilson added 6 kills on the right pin, Jordyn Dailey and Asia Thigpen each had five, Brooke Bultema and Erin Lamb had four a piece, and Kennedy Washington and Haley Melby each added three.  

In Tuesday’s loss to Nebraska, the Cats struggled to find point production aside from their two outsides. But in Friday’s match, senior setter Emma Grome placed a clear emphasis on getting the right pin involved in the offense. 

“We’ve been working on some different things overhead so I really wanted to try to iron that out tonight and throughout the weekend,” Grome said. “Definitely a focus. Our outsides were very good in Nebraska but we need to get some more production in other areas.” 

On the defensive side of the floor, Kentucky stifled NKU as they limited the Norse to just 14 kills through three sets of play and a hitting percentage of -.088. The Cats totaled 6.0 team blocks and forced NKU into 20 hitting errors. 

At the net, freshman Brooke Bultema continued an impressive first week of play as she finished with a match-high 4.0 rejections. Wilson added three and Dailey had two. On the back line, senior libero Eleanor Beavin picked up nine digs, Grome had seven, and Thigpen and DeLeye each added four. 

With the win, Kentucky improves to 1-1 on the season. Next up, the Cats will take on Western Kentucky Saturday for their second match of the Bluegrass Battle. First serve against the Hilltoppers is set for 5:30 pm.