University of St. Thomas Athletics
Thursday, September 18
Evanston, Ill.
7:00 p.m. CT
7-3,0-0Summit League
3
at
0
Northwestern
9-2,0-0Big Ten
1
2
3
F
St. Thomas (MN)
25
25
25
3
Northwestern
15
17
20
0
Photo by: Collin Boyles
Tommies control Wildcats in sweep to open Northwestern Tournament
9/18/2025 10:11:00 PM | Volleyball
Megan Wetter finishes with 17 kills on a .517 attack percentage as the team hit .412
EVANSTON, Ill. – Senior middle blocker Megan Wetter continued to power St. Thomas volleyball as the team powered its way to a 3-0 sweep (25-15, 25-17, 25-20) over Northwestern on Thursday, Sept. 18. Wetter finished with a match-high 17 kills on a .517 hitting percentage while senior libero Ella Voegele totaled 15 digs as the Tommies (7-3) won their seventh straight match.
SCORING SUMMARY
Set One: The Tommies set the tone early with a balanced attack and steady defense, using kills from Wetter and Ellie Gustafson to build separation. Addie Schmotzer added a block during a key 6–1 stretch that pushed the lead to double digits, and St. Thomas closed out the opener 25–15.
Set Two: Northwestern grabbed the first few points, but St. Thomas answered with a 7–1 run capped by a solo block by Schmotzer, the 100th of her career. The Tommies extended their lead behind strong serving and timely swings from Schmidt and Wetter, controlling the frame throughout for a 25–17 win.
Set Three: The Tommies used an early 10-1 run behind four kills from Wetter for a 12-4 lead. St. Thomas withstood a late Wildcat rally to close off its second-ever Power Four win on a kill from Emma Goerger.
TOMMIE TIDBITS
· St. Thomas extended its Division I-best winning streak to seven matches after beating a Power Four team for the second time, both against Big Ten opponents. Prior to defeating Northwestern, St. Thomas beat Iowa 3-1 on Sept. 13 at the Panther Invitational in Milwaukee, Wis.
· The Tommies hit a season-best .412 from the floor with 55 total kills, averaging out to a season-high 18.3 kills per set. St. Thomas hit seven service aces, its seventh straight match with at least five, led by junior Ellie Gustafson with three.
· Senior Megan Wetter led all players with 17 kills on a .517 hitting percentage, her fourth straight match hitting above .400 and with double-digit kills.
· Senior libero Ella Voegele totaled 15 digs during the sweep, her second-best digs per set (5.0) of the season.
· Junior Morgan Kealy reached 2,000 career assists in the match after finishing with 37 to go along with 8 digs. Kealy continues to serve as the program's career assist leader during the DI era.
· Redshirt-sophomore Allie Schmotzer recorded her 100th career block, finishing with three on the night.
· Freshman Anya Schmidt and senior Tezra Rudzitis each topped double-figure kills, Schmidt with 12 on a .321 attack percentage and Rudzitis with 10 on a .588 clip.
QUOTEABLES
Head Coach Thanh Pham's thoughts following the Tommies' second win over a Big Ten team:
"I was very pleased with our team's effort against a good Northwestern team. Our ball control and serving were big separators in the match. I thought it was a complete, balanced and team effort win with Megan Wetter leading the way."
UP NEXT
St. Thomas ends its trip to Illinois Friday with a 4 p.m. first serve against Campbell at Welsh-Ryan Arena.
Follow Along
For more information on St. Thomas Volleyball, follow along on X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram at @tommievball. Tommie Athletics is now available on TikTok at @TommieSports.
Join Us
To reserve your seat to be a part of the Tommies' 2025 season, click HERE to view ticketing information and purchase options.
-- St. Thomas Athletics --
SCORING SUMMARY
Set One: The Tommies set the tone early with a balanced attack and steady defense, using kills from Wetter and Ellie Gustafson to build separation. Addie Schmotzer added a block during a key 6–1 stretch that pushed the lead to double digits, and St. Thomas closed out the opener 25–15.
Set Two: Northwestern grabbed the first few points, but St. Thomas answered with a 7–1 run capped by a solo block by Schmotzer, the 100th of her career. The Tommies extended their lead behind strong serving and timely swings from Schmidt and Wetter, controlling the frame throughout for a 25–17 win.
Set Three: The Tommies used an early 10-1 run behind four kills from Wetter for a 12-4 lead. St. Thomas withstood a late Wildcat rally to close off its second-ever Power Four win on a kill from Emma Goerger.
TOMMIE TIDBITS
· St. Thomas extended its Division I-best winning streak to seven matches after beating a Power Four team for the second time, both against Big Ten opponents. Prior to defeating Northwestern, St. Thomas beat Iowa 3-1 on Sept. 13 at the Panther Invitational in Milwaukee, Wis.
· The Tommies hit a season-best .412 from the floor with 55 total kills, averaging out to a season-high 18.3 kills per set. St. Thomas hit seven service aces, its seventh straight match with at least five, led by junior Ellie Gustafson with three.
· Senior Megan Wetter led all players with 17 kills on a .517 hitting percentage, her fourth straight match hitting above .400 and with double-digit kills.
· Senior libero Ella Voegele totaled 15 digs during the sweep, her second-best digs per set (5.0) of the season.
· Junior Morgan Kealy reached 2,000 career assists in the match after finishing with 37 to go along with 8 digs. Kealy continues to serve as the program's career assist leader during the DI era.
· Redshirt-sophomore Allie Schmotzer recorded her 100th career block, finishing with three on the night.
· Freshman Anya Schmidt and senior Tezra Rudzitis each topped double-figure kills, Schmidt with 12 on a .321 attack percentage and Rudzitis with 10 on a .588 clip.
QUOTEABLES
Head Coach Thanh Pham's thoughts following the Tommies' second win over a Big Ten team:
"I was very pleased with our team's effort against a good Northwestern team. Our ball control and serving were big separators in the match. I thought it was a complete, balanced and team effort win with Megan Wetter leading the way."
UP NEXT
St. Thomas ends its trip to Illinois Friday with a 4 p.m. first serve against Campbell at Welsh-Ryan Arena.
Follow Along
For more information on St. Thomas Volleyball, follow along on X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram at @tommievball. Tommie Athletics is now available on TikTok at @TommieSports.
Join Us
To reserve your seat to be a part of the Tommies' 2025 season, click HERE to view ticketing information and purchase options.
-- St. Thomas Athletics --
Team Stats
UST
NU
Kills
55
37
Errors
8
7
Attempts
114
109
Hitting %
.412
.275
Points
66.0
41.0
Assists
47
36
Aces
7
3
Blocks
4
1
Game Leaders
Kills
17
Aces
0
Blocks
1
Kills
12
Aces
1
Blocks
1
Kills
10
Aces
0
Blocks
1
Kills
5
Aces
1
Blocks
1
Players Mentioned
MB
/ Volleyball
OH
/ VolleyballS
/ VolleyballRS
/ VolleyballOH
/ Volleyball
MB
/ Volleyball
DS/L
/ VolleyballMB
/ VolleyballHomegrown Tommies: Anya Schmidt
Tuesday, March 03
Postgame: Tommie Volleyball Press Conference vs ISU (NCAA Tournament)
Sunday, December 07
Tommie Volleyball NCAA Tournament Press Conference
Monday, December 01
St. Thomas Volleyball 2023 Intro Video
Tuesday, September 05
