MVNU (22-7, 4-2 AMC) picked up the milestone win in the first match of the day against the Lady Arrows as the Lady Cougars prevailed 25-14, 25-13, 25-11 to snap a brief two-match conference losing skid. Junior outside hitter Jackie Albrecht led the way with 16 kills and 14 digs, while freshman middle hitter Haley Nofziger added eight kills. Senior setter Kaylin Austen (left) handed out 35 assists, and junior right-side hitter Courtney Springer and junior middle hitter Sarah Yutzy each pounded six kills apiece with Springer adding 14 digs. Junior defensive specialist Caitlin Myles and freshman right-side hitter Kaylee Hewitt tallied 23 and 16 digs apiece, while senior outside hitter Julie Haumschild led the team with three blocks.

MVNU made it two wins on the day as the Lady Cougars pulled out a hard-fought 25-16, 25-19, 18-25, 29-27 victory over Houghton in the second match. Albrecht again led the team with 16 kills, three aces, 12 digs, and three blocks, while Springer and Yutzy each added 13 kills. Austen handed out 48 assists and matched her career high with five kills, and Myles led the squad with 23 more digs.

“It was nice to get back on track with a pair of wins,” said MVNU coach Paul Swanson. “We played great against Ursuline and then did well in the first two sets before handing on to pull out the fourth set against Houghton, who was playing well also. We need to keep working to get better as we have a really tough match coming up.”

The Lady Cougars now have an overall record of 1,001-402 since the inception of the program in 1976. Taylor (Ind.) University, which has fielded a team since 1971, is the only other NAIA volleyball program to top the 1,000-win mark as the Lady Trojans accomplished the feat last year and now have an overall record of 1,028-411-1. The next team most likely to reach the 1,000-win mark is Columbia (Mo.) College with a current record (through Saturday) of 977-242 since 1983.

MVNU will return to action on Tuesday when the Lady Cougars will host Cedarville University in an important AMC match at 7:00 p.m. in the Physical Education Center.