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Miller, Jackson
WIU Visual Productions Center
3
Winner North Dakota State NDSU 13-14 (7-6)
1
Western Illinois WIU 5-20 (3-9)
Winner
North Dakota State NDSU
13-14 (7-6)
3
Final
1
Western Illinois WIU
5-20 (3-9)
Set Scores
Team 1 2 3 4 F
North Dakota State NDSU 27 16 26 25 (3)
Western Illinois WIU 25 25 24 13 (1)

Game Recap: Women's Volleyball | | WIU Athletic Media Services

Leathernecks Drop Four-Set Match to North Dakota State

Team returns to action for senior day on Sunday (Nov. 9)

MACOMB, Ill. - The Western Illinois Fighting Leatherneck volleyball team returned to action Friday night (Nov. 7) to take on North Dakota State in league action. The Leathernecks fought hard, but ultimately fell by a 3-1 final to the Bison. Ann Miller led the way for Western Illinois, posting a team-high 18 kills.

Extra points were needed in an opening set which featured 10 ties and seven lead changes. Early on, back-to-back kills by Ann Miller and Sarah Sikula gave the Purple and Gold a slim 11-8 advantage. Shortly thereafter, Western used a 4-0 run to build its biggest lead of the set. The run, which was highlighted by a Melanie Miller block and three NDSU hitting errors, gave Western a 17-12 advantage. However, the lead wouldn't last long, as the Bison followed with a 7-0 run of their own to take the lead at 19-17. From there, the two teams would trade points until the end of the set. Facing set point at 24-22, Western won consecutive points to tie things up at 24. Sikula was once again called upon for a kill to give the Leathernecks set point at 25-24. In the end, the Bison would claim three straight points for the first set victory, 27-25.

The second set was all Western, as the Leathernecks cruised to a 25-16 victory behind a solid offensive attack paired with stingy defense. The Purple and Gold outhit the Bison .333 to .027 in the set, and were led offensively by Miller, who recorded seven of the team's 13 kills in the set. Western Illinois began to pull away thanks in part to an 8-1 scoring run to extend the lead to 18-9. Miller registered back-to-back kills to get the run started, and kills from Mallory Gibson, Sikula, and a pair of Leatherneck blocks kept the run going. Melanie Miller put an exclamation point on the set with a solo block to give Western the second set victory as they teams headed for intermission.

"The team had more fire and a higher attention to detail with the game plan, and they really hammered the game plan the entire set," said head coach April Hall. "They didn't take a point off and kept going at it. We had a big lead and kept pushing but lost things in sets three and four."

Coming out of the break, Western Illinois lost a heartbreaking third set. The two teams would stay neck and neck with one another, as neither team led by more than three points in the set. Samantha Fournier picked up one of her seven kills in the match to give the Leathernecks set point at 24-22. With Western poised to go up 2-1 in the match, NDSU countered with four straight points to take the 26-24 decision in the third set. NDSU would take the match with a 25-13 victory in a fourth set in which the Bison never trailed.

Miller's 18 kills led the team offensively as she continues to climb Western Illinois' all-time kills list. After tonight's performance, Miller has 1,246 career kills and only needs 15 more to move into second place on the all-time kills list, currently held by Jennifer Dockemeyer (1,260). Miller picked up a double-double in the effort tonight, as she also collected 10 digs. Molly Murphy (23 digs) and Kayla Ruff (20) each matched their season-high in digs as they anchored the back line of the Western defense. Fournier dished out a team-leading 33 assists on the evening. 

Western returns to action on Sunday (Nov. 9) to take on South Dakota. The team will honor its four seniors, Samantha Fournier, Mallory Gibson, Ann Miller and Molly Murphy, as they play their last game inside Western Hall. First serve between the Leathernecks and Coyotes is set for 2 p.m.
 
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