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MACOMB - The Western Illinois volleyball team had three players
record double-doubles but the Fighting Leathernecks (5-8, 2-3 Summit League)
fell 3-2 (25-23, 19-25, 17-25,
25-17, 10-15) to Summit League foe IUPUI Friday night at Brophy
Hall to conclude a five-match homestand.
Down 2-1, the Leathernecks dominated the fourth set to force a fifth-set
tiebreaker. Despite recording five more kills than IUPUI (3-12, 2-3 Summit
League) in the fifth set, Western fell 10-15 in the final stanza to drop the
match.
"To play so well in the fourth set and ultimately
lose the match was disappointing," Western Illinois head coach Kym
McKay said. "We created a lot of momentum entering the fifth set but let
it slip away. We had great crowds over the last three matches
but did not perform to the level we are accustomed to."
The Leathernecks came out strong with 17 kills in the
first set and eventually won a back-and-forth battle with the Jaguars 25-23.
The set, which saw three Leathernecks record at least four kills, featured
eight ties and five lead changes. IUPUI outhit Western .200-.087 in a 25-19
second set victory and used five service aces to win the third set, 25-17.
Defense guided Western to an easy 25-17 fourth set
victory as the Leathernecks held IUPUI to a -.048 attack percentage and
collected three total blocks. After a Megan Toczek kill tied the fifth set at
10-10, IUPUI went on a 5-0 run to close out the set and match. The final stanza
featured eight ties and three lead changes but IUPUI held Western to a -.032
attack percentage to secure the victory.
Junior middle hitter Cait Egan led the Leatherneck
offensive attack with 15 kills and a .324 attack percentage. Egan, who added
2.5 total blocks, has posted 27 kills and a .328 attack percentage over the
last two matches.
Left side hitters Allison Gilbert and Brooke
Stittleburg had 15 and 14 kills, respectively, and finished the homestand with
a combined 6.25 kills per set. Stittleburg, who also posted 10 digs for her
third double-double in four matches, averaged a team-high 3.40 kills per set on
the homestand. Gilbert, who reached the 500-career kill milestone in the first
set, had 15 digs to record her first career double-double.
Freshman Heather Smith had 32 assists and senior
Ellen Miller chipped in 21 assists over the final three sets. Miller, who is
second on the team with 2.76
digs per set, added 13 digs to collect
her first double-double since the season opener at Bradley (Aug. 27).
The Leathernecks had four players with double-digit
digs with sophomore Bridget Murphy leading the way with a season-high 19. Overall,
Western held advantages in kills (58-49), assists (57-46) and digs (79-75).
Western has the rest of the weekend off before traveling to face Southern Utah
on Thursday, Sept. 30 at 8 p.m. The road trip continues two days later when the
Leathernecks take on UMKC on Saturday, Oct. 2 at 7 p.m.
