By Nathan Vaughan

With another pair of weekend wins, the volleyball team continues to cement its status as the class of the conference.

Coming off its fourth weekend sweep in a row, Northeastern has moved into sole possession of first place in the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA). With wins over Virginia Commonwealth and William ‘ Mary, the Huskies improved their season high winning streak to nine, tied for fourth best in Northeastern history. Their record now stands at 11-7 (5-0 CAA), with their last loss coming to Ohio Sept. 13.

The Huskies have had this success almost exclusively on the road, having played 16 of 18 matches away from Boston. All of their CAA games have been away, including two weekends in a row spent in Virginia. Head coach Ken Nichols said the team has handled the difficult road schedule well.

“The kids who are out there on the floor are so experienced,” he said. “They are very in tune with the system and they are very good at adjusting and that is a huge advantage.”

Northeastern opened this weekend at VCU, and the match was highlighted by the return of sophomore setter and opposite hitter Britney Brown from illness. It marked the first time since the beginning of the season that every member of the team was fully healthy. Brown made her presence immediately felt starting off the match with a pair of kills.

The set was marked with runs by both teams and then a back and forth battle. The Huskies were able to hold the Rams to a .097 hit percentage while hitting .235 themselves. Northeastern won the set 25-21.

The Huskies once again took an early lead in the second set, though VCU kept it close. The Huskies went on a 6-1 run, which gave them enough of a cushion to hold on for a 25-18 win. The set was just the fourth Northeastern has lost during its win streak.

Going into the third set, the Rams managed to take an early 3-0 lead. The Rams kept a hold on the lead until the the Huskies tied it at 13. The rest of the set was a seesaw affair. But sophomore middle hitter Jillian Robinson and Brown each got kills to give the Huskies the edge and the Huskies won the set 26-24, thus winning the match.

Going into the Saturday match against William ‘ Mary, both teams stood at 4-0 in CAA play. Early in the first set Northeastern jumped on the Tribe, going on a 6-0 run early. At one point the Huskies held a 12-3 lead which turned into an eventual 25-15 set victory.

The second set was a different story for the Huskies. The two teams traded runs until the Tribe took a 9-6 lead. Northeastern hung tough for the rest of the match but was unable to overtake William ‘ Mary, losing 25-18.

The Tribe took the momentum going into the third set to lead 5-2 at the start. Northeastern answered and tied it up at six all and the match stayed back and forth until it was tied at 19. From there the Huskies ended on a 6-2 run to win 25-22.

In the fourth set, NU continued what they started in the last set, getting off to a 4-0 run. The Tribe came roaring back to take the lead 10-8. Northeastern tied it at 11 and the two teams battled to tie at 20. William ‘ Mary took a 23-22 advantage which the Huskies overcame to win 25-23.

This weekend, Brown led the Huskies. She had a double-double Friday against VCU while compiling a triple-double against William ‘ Mary. She compiled 25 kills, 48 sets, 19 digs and three service aces in total during the weekend. Brown pulled this off after missing most of the last two weeks due to illness.

“I was really nervous going in after missing practice. Just getting back on the court helped,” Brown said. “I had to put it all out there on the court to help my team win.”

Senior captain and outside hitter Lauren DeTurk recorded a double-double against VCU with match highs in kills and digs, with 12 and 15 respectively. Against William ‘ Mary, she had three aces with 14 digs to go with eight kills. She said she was impressed by the equal distribution of talent for the Huskies.

“I go into each match playing my best. As a team we are so good it takes the pressure off of us,” DeTurk said. “We are in first place but haven’t had a player of the week. We are a really well balanced team.”

The Huskies return to action at Solomon Court tomorrow night against Georgia State at 7 p.m. They host UNC Wilmington Sunday at 1 p.m.