MILWAUKEE – After a weekend in Indianapolis, the Milwaukee volleyball team returns home for a pair of Horizon League matches against the Northern Kentucky Norse at the Klotsche Center. The Panthers and Norse will square off at 6:00 p.m. on Friday evening, before a 1:00 p.m. start on Saturday afternoon.
 
Live stats of the match will be available at MKEPanthers.com, while tickets for all remaining home matches are still available for purchase at MKEPanthers.com/Tickets.
 
WEEK AT A GLANCE & GAME LINKS FIRST SERVE
» Milwaukee went 1-2 on the week in Horizon League play, earning a three-set win over Green Bay on Tuesday evening at the Klotsche Center behind a team-best 12 kills from Natalie Schmitz. The weekend in Indianapolis got off on the right foot with a win in the opening set against IU Indy on Friday, but the Jaguars won the next three sets for a four-set win before recording a sweep of the Panthers on Saturday afternoon.
» Northern Kentucky went 2-1 this past week with a five-set win over Horizon League favorite Wright State on Tuesday evening at home before splitting a weekend set against Youngstown State. The Norse won the first match in straight sets against the Penguins on Friday before falling in five to YSU on Saturday afternoon.
» In 21 all-time matches between the Panthers and Norse, it's been NKU to hold the slight advantage with 11 wins against 10 losses. Last season the two teams split the weekend in Highland Heights with the Panthers winning in five sets on Oct. 11 and were swept the following afternoon by their hosts.
» On just eight occasions in the all-time series has Milwaukee or Northern Kentucky swept one another. The Norse are 6-2 in sweeps against the Panthers, while four-set matches have gone 5-4 in favor of NKU. Milwaukee has won all four of the five-set matches between MKE and the Norse in their head-to-head matchups.
» The Norse historically have not traveled well to Milwaukee with the Panthers owning a 7-1 mark against Northern Kentucky entering play this weekend. The lone NKU win came on Oct. 28, 2022, in four sets.
» This weekend will feature the top two liberos in the league with Lucy Cluxton of Northern Kentucky bringing in her league-best 4.79 digs/set against Kara Erdmann, who averages 4.47 digs per set this season.
» Milwaukee will look to avoid the fierce blocking effort of Northern Kentucky, who leads the Horizon League with 2.40 blocks per set. The Panthers are 0-10 this season in matches where they are outblocked by opponents, the team is 3-3 with more digs than their opponents and 0-2 when blocks are equal.

LOOKING AT NORTHERN KENTUCKY
Off to an 8-8 start on the season with a 4-1 mark in Horizon League matchups, Northern Kentucky enters off a split weekend with Youngstown State on the road. The Norse won the weekend opener, 3-0, before falling in five sets to the Penguins on Saturday.

One of the longest tenured coaches among Horizon League programs, Liz Hart has led the program through its transition from Division II to Division I and led the program to 264 wins including at least 18 wins in three of the past four seasons.

This year's team boasts marks in the top-75 of NCAA Division I in blocks per set (2.40), digs per set (15.42), assists (732), attacks per set (35.73), digs (956), kills (782), total attacks (2,215), and total blocks (149). The Norse lead the Horizon League in blocks per set, opponent hitting percentage (.189), and total blocks.

Lucy Cluxton has been one of the top defenders in the league since joining the team in 2022 and is on a similar pace to last season, where she averaged 4.81 digs per set, barely off the pace at 4.79 digs per set in 2025. Three Norse defenders already have at least 50 blocks thus far in the season with Ivey Stocks leading the way with 70. Sydney Bray had 54 blocks, while Kendall Hopewell is sitting at 50 entering play this week.

Allison Risley leads the team offensively with 188 kills on the year, with Bray second with 171. Ava Hoying has 143 and Stocks rounds out the quartet with at least 100 kills with 133. Abby Pickard has notched 572 assists in the team's 5-1 offense to go along with her 11 service aces. Risley leads the team from beyond the service line with 27, while Cluxton has 22.

UP NEXT
Following the weekend at home against Northern Kentucky, the Panthers will head back on the road for their next five contests beginning with league favorite Wright State next weekend in Dayton. The team will then travel to Youngstown State for a weekend set and a single match against Green Bay before returning home to close out October.

ALL-TIME IN DIGS
1. Lauren Felsing (2006-09): 1,929
2. Becky Peters (2005-08): 1,875
3. Jess Grabowski (2018-21): 1,859
4. Kaley Blake (2020-23): 1,760
5. Myanna Ruiz (2013-16): 1,700
6. Laura Dallenbach (1998-01): 1,600
7. Kara Erdmann (2022-present): 1,407
8. Leanne Felsing (2004-07): 1,329

ALL-TIME IN ASSISTS
1. Katie Schneider (1996-99): 5,276
...
8. Kari Naber (1994-97): 2,308
9. Leane Felsing (2004-07): 2,264
10. Josie Johnson (2022-present): 2,081

In the team's match against Arizona State, Josie Johnson became the 10th player in program history to reach 2,000 career assists.

NOBLE UP FRONT
With 55 blocks on the season, Josie Noble leads Milwaukee with her efforts and is looking to become the first freshman to lead the Panthers in blocks since Ari Miller had 99 blocks her freshman season in 2019.

The freshman record at Milwaukee for blocks in a season is Natalie Schmitting, who had 123 blocks in 2007. There have been five first-year players in program history to record at least 100 digs in their rookie campaigns.

At 0.98 blocks per set entering play this week, Noble is on pace to finish sixth on the freshman list in blocks per set during a season.

ELLA SCHUETZ HEATING UP
After just 20 kills in her first six matches, newcomer Ella Schuetz has tallied 68 kills over her most recent nine contests including double figures in each of her two matches against Oak-land on Sept. 26-27.

WITHIN THE HORIZON
Below are Milwaukee's top performers in each statistical category, as provided by the Horizon League…
Hitting Percentage: Josie Noble (8th, .265 Pct.)
Kills: Natalie Schmitz (14th, 2.78 Kills/Set)
Service Aces: Josie Noble (24th, 0.21 Blocks/Set)
Blocks: Josie Noble (5th, 0.98 Blocks/Set)
Digs: Kara Erdmann (2nd, 4.47 Digs/Set)
Points: Natalie Schmitz (15th, 2.96 Points/Set)

REACHING THE MARK
Senior Natalie Schmitz became the latest Panther to join the 1,000 kill club with her sixth kill earlier this season against Iowa State. In doing so, Schmitz became the first Panther to reach 1,000 since Madi Malone did so during her junior season in 2023. Former teammate and all-time kills leader Ari Miller reached 1,000 career kills a season prior in 2022 and finished her career with 1,563.

BELLA'S BREAKOUT
Junior Bella Lipski put together some big time marks at the 2025 Panther Invitational with back-to-back 11-kill performances against Central Michigan and South Alabama. The Milwaukee native entered the season with a match-high of four kills but has since surpassed that mark four times this year, with a career-best 12 kills at IU Indy on Oct. 4. Defensively she already has 43 blocks on the season, already a new career high.

SUSIE APPROACHING 200
After reaching 300 total coaching wins with Milwaukee in 2024, head coach Susie Johnson boasts a 199-94 record in Horizon League matches and is one away from reaching 200 for her league career. Chuck Voss, current head coach at Cleveland State entered the season with 220 wins in league play.

PANTHERS vs. RANKED
Milwaukee played two teams this season that garnered attention from the American Volleyball Coaches Association. The Panthers are played Preseason No. 8 Wisconsin on Sept. 9 before taking on Marquette on Sept. 14, the Golden Eagles are receiving votes in the poll. The schedule also featured preseason No. 13 Arizona State in Tempe on Sept. 21.

The Panthers are 2-39 in all-time meetings against top-25 programs, which includes the losses earlier this season to Wisconsin and Arizona State.

ON THE HORIZON
Next season, Northern Illinois will join the Horizon League as its 12th full-time member. Not far from Milwaukee, the Panthers and Huskies have met 20 times on the volleyball court with NIU leading the series by a 12-8 margin. However, the Panthers have won three of the last four matchups, including a five-set win over Northern Illinois on Sept. 1, 2024.