Set Point #2: Trying to forget a tumultuous preseason

The players are back on campus, the net has been set up, and the sounds of bouncing balls and diving defensemen can be heard echoing through Welsh-Ryan Arena.

It's been 271 days since Northwestern played a meaningful volleyball game, but that streak will end with just two more tallies. NU heads to Virginia on Friday to kick off its season against George Mason at 5 p.m. CT.

The Patriots went 17-13 last season, including a 3-0 sweep over Rutgers, so the match should provide a baseline of purple-and-white expectations for 2026. A strong start to the season is vital to enter conference play with momentum and experience winning, so there's no room for mistakes against George Mason and the following non-Big Ten games.

With all of that being said, if Friday goes anything like Northwestern's two preseason exhibition matches, the 'Cats are in trouble.

NU traveled to play Milwaukee for its first exhibition game on Aug. 15 and lost three straight sets after stealing away the first one.

The main positive from Northwestern's first time on the court was the potential potency of its attack. Campbell Paris was incredibly impressive in an increased role and had nine kills from the outside. Gabrielle Gerry was another standout on the offensive end as she put down seven kills on eight attempts. Gerry seemed to answer any doubts about her ability as a full-time starter at middle and looked like a sniper when set. Utah State transfer Mara Štiglic also contributed seven kills and the first-year middle combo of Hayley Schaaf and Maya Stillwell had five and four, respectively. NU looked well-rounded and versatile from all three hitting positions as it seemingly always had multiple options.

Yet I said the attack's potential potency for a reason. While there were certainly flashes of an unstoppable, three-pronged attack, mental mistakes and errors held NU back. The 'Cats had 25 hitting errors and hit under 25 percent as a team. Isabella Bullington hit .05 on 20 attempts, and first-year Clara Schramm hit in the negatives with seven errors on 20 attempts. While errors are forgivable in the preseason, Bullington needs to be more efficient and Schramm needs to adjust to the collegiate level if she wants consistent playing time in the regular season.

​Another positive for Northwestern was the setting. While both Wildcat setters are fresh out of the high school ranks, they appeared to handle themselves well. Ellie Stiernagle played more than her counterpart Kaitlyn Bodnar in the match, but the duo ended with 29 and 13 assists, respectively. The setting was not the reason Northwestern lost, and that's a good thing given the massive risk Nollan took on the two diaper dandies.

The main area of concern for Northwestern was the blocking. NU had only four blocks in total and frequently allowed clean attacks to pepper the backrow defense. Blocking was a big problem last season, and it appears to be the Achilles heel of the Wildcats once again.

Northwestern then faced off against Loyola Chicago on Aug. 22. The 'Cats once again lost in four sets after narrowly winning the first, and it was largely the same story.

The offensive repertoire was dazzling at times as Paris and Štiglic led the way with 22 and 17 kills. Bullington added 11 kills, but her nine errors on 43 attempts made for another inefficient day. Gerry saw limited playing time while Kauffman, Schaaf and Stillwell struggled to hit with conviction. The 'Cats hit .189 on the day as their 29 errors plagued them from start to finish.

​Blocking remained an issue for Northwestern throughout the game, and it also struggled from the service line with 10 serving errors. The 'Cats couldn't get out of their own way and simply beat themselves. That will have to change when they face off against better competition.

An important note from the second exhibition game was Stiernagle playing all four sets as the lone setter. She had 44 assists as well as five digs and four kills as she flashed the potential of a complete and polished everyday setter for Northwestern.

Looking at the two exhibition games together, there's a lot to be excited about, but there's even more that needs to be fixed. The errors need to be controlled, the blocking needs to improve mightily and the Wildcats need to walk onto the court against lesser competition knowing that they should win dominantly. I'm not going to overreact to two preseason losses, but it was certainly a week to forget for NU.

Finally, the exhibition matches taught us a lot about Nollan's rotations for 2026. Paris, Štiglic and Bullington should be the main hitting trio as expected, with Schramm looking like the first outside off the bench. Though Gerry didn't play as much in the second exhibition match, her performance against Milwaukee should warrant the first starting middle spot. The second starting middle role appears up for grabs, with Kauffman holding the edge for now over Schaaf. Stiernagle's versatility might have given her full ownership of the setting position as she looked much more comfortable than her fellow first-year Bodnar. Last but not least, there's not much to say about the libero trio of Drew Wright, Gigi Navarrete and Lauren Dignan other than all three will play and all three will play a lot.

Overall, it seems like Nollan more or less knows his rotations for Northwestern's weekend tripleheader, but the 'Cats still need someone to step up to take them to the next level. There's no longer validity to all of the talk of the offseason or even the preseason, as this time next week the season will be in full swing. Northwestern plays George Mason at 5 p.m. CT on Friday, American at 3 p.m. CT on Saturday and Georgetown at 1 p.m. CT on Sunday. The 'Cats are ready to roar.