Michaela (Schimmer) Perry, (Terry Douglass, Central Nebraska Today)
GRAND ISLAND — Michaela (Schimmer) Perry had plenty to celebrate Tuesday night.
Moments after being inducted into the Northwest Athletic Hall of Fame in a pre-match ceremony, Perry guided her Aurora volleyball team to a four-set road victory over Class B No. 9-ranked (Omaha World-Herald) Northwest 19-25, 25-17, 25-21, 25-23 at Rosencrants Gymnasium.
Kaitlyn Staehr led the Huskies (12-7) with a match-high 18 kills, while Hailey Hoff dished out 34 assists and added three ace serves. Kenna Merrihew chipped in seven kills and Evelyn Kraus and Paityn Wyatt also served three aces apiece as Aurora avenged a 2-1 loss to the Vikings on Sept. 6 at the Beatrice Invitational.
After dropping the opening set, Aurora raced to a 19-6 lead in the second and never looked back. The Huskies closed the third set on an 8-1 run after trailing 20-17, then took a 12-4 advantage and held off a late Northwest rally in the fourth.
Ava Janulewicz paced Northwest (9-5) with 16 kills and Elli Payne added 14 kills and three blocks. Kenna Bowman finished with 32 assists, surpassing Lyndi Rouzee’s program record of 1,660 career assists with her 14th of the match.