HAMMOND, La. – ULM Volleyball charged ahead for a 3-2 match victory (26-24, 24-26, 20-25, 25-23, 15-13) over Northwestern State in Saturday morning's final match in the Battle for the Boot. Madeline Williams had a match-high 19 kills and added six blocks to her totals. Williams and Brynn Botkin were selected for All-Tournament honors.
 
The Warhawks and Lady Demons split the first two sets with identical 26-24 scores with ULM winning the first set and Northwestern State. NSU captured the next two sets, hitting .333 in the third set to take a 2-1 advantage.
 
"This was an extraordinary finish to our preseason," said ULM head volleyball coach Charlie Olson about his team's non-conference slate. "Our total team effort showed true grit and determination. We had yet to get over our 5-set hump, having been in that situation four times prior. Today, we stuck to our game plan and played point for point against a very determined NSU squad. It's fitting that we capped off this portion of our season with another 5-set matchup against NSU; however, coming up victorious this time around. We look forward to celebrating this victory with some ice cream and a fun bus ride back to Monroe."

The Warhawks and Lady Demons were locked in a tie in set four before ULM used three separate runs of four-straight points to hold off NSU. Williams' kills put ULM up by two at 16-14 and 18-16 before a four-point streak put ULM in the lead at 22-18. ULM held off a late rally by the Lady Demons as Botkin put the Warhawks up 23-20 prior to the final score.
 
ULM had its best offensive performance in set five, hitting at a .292 clip as the two teams tied 10 times. Botkin slammed a kill and a NSU block error put the Warhawks up 14-13 and Tessa Gerwig sealed the win with her kill.
 
"It was a complete team effort this weekend," Olson said. "Congrats to Madeline Williams and Brynn Botkin on earning All-Tournament Honors."
 
ULM begins the Sun Belt Conference portion of its schedule with a two-match series vs. Texas State in Monroe. The Thursday, Sept. 22, match begins at 6 p.m. and the Friday, Sept. 23 match is set for 2 p.m. Both matches will be streamed by ESPN+.