ALVA, Okla. – The Northwestern Oklahoma State volleyball team picked up their school-record 18^th victory of the season, 3-1 over Southern Nazarene (23-25, 25-18, 25-22, 25-17).

The Rangers (18-8, 8-4 GAC) rebounded after a tough start in the opening set and rattled off three set victories in a row in order to secure the most wins recorded in a season since the rebirth of the program in 2012. The 18 victory eclipses the 17 win mark that was set by the 2014 team.

Junior Brooklynn Hesson led the Rangers with 21 assists on a night where the Ranger offense continually put pressure on the Crimson Storm (11-15, 6-6 GAC) defense. Hesson, junior Hannah Williams, and sophomore Eubanks all posted double-digit kills, while setter Kiauna Clark was one assist shy of the school record with 51.
Williams notched 18 kills on 43 total attacks for a percentage of .209 while Eubanks led the squad with a .440 percentage on 13 kills.

Hesson, Clark, and Williams also posted 10 or more digs throughout the match. Clark matched defensive specialist Tobi Barker with a team-high 14 while Williams and Hesson each had 11.

Senior Carley Geer posted 12 digs and four assists and fellow classmate Liz Dwyer matched her season-high number of six kills.  

Six early kills from the Crimson Storm prompted an early Northwestern timeout at the 9-5 mark of the first set. A few defensive breakdowns proved costly as the Southern Nazarene got off to a quick start thanks to their high octane offense.

Back-to-back kills from Eubanks coming out of the timeout followed by three straight points from Hesson tied the contest back up at 11-11. A 7-3 ensuing run in favor of Southern Nazarene influenced another Ranger timeout to try and slow the momentum that the Storm had once again built up. Three quick Northwestern points forced a Southern Nazarene timeout of their own as neither team could establish a separation within the set.

Both teams traded blows all the way to the 23-23 mark, where two straight Southern Nazarene points propelled the visiting squad to a 25-23 first set victory.

Both teams found success on the offensive end, as Southern Nazarene posted a team hitting percentage of .447 along with Northwestern's average of .318 in the first set alone.

Two kills from Hesson and Eubanks led the Rangers to an early 6-3 lead in the beginning stages of the second set. The defensive breakdowns that plagued Northwestern in the first set began to work themselves outt while the offense continued to roll, leading to a 25-18 second set victory.

Four kills from Eubanks throughout the early portions of the set gave the Rangers the 19-13 advantage in the third set. A comeback from the Storm brought the score back to 24-22 after leading by as much as 23-17.

A kill from Williams finally ended the Storm's attempt at a comeback, clinching the third set victory, 25-22.

The fourth set opened up with both teams looking to establish a lead, which would eventually be the case thanks to four straight Ranger points at the 8-8 mark to force a Southern Nazarene timeout with Northwestern up 12-8. That start allowed the Rangers to continue to impose their will and finished off the fourth and final set with a 25-17 victory.

The Rangers will now turn their attention to a road contest in Durant, Okla. against Southeastern Oklahoma State on Oct. 31 at 7 p.m.