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CHICAGO, Ill. -,The Western Illinois volleyball team closed out the 2014 UIC Invitational facing tournament host UIC. After falling behind early, the Leathernecks stormed back to down the Flames, 3-2, in a five set thriller. Senior Ann Miller was named the All-Tournament Team at the conclusion of tournament play.

"We needed tonight. We've fought through a lot of adversity in the past eight days and needed a win against a great team," said head coach April Hall. "We played a great UIC team who brought it throughout the match."

The opening two sets did not look promising for the Leathernecks, as UIC quickly opened up to a 2-0 advantage. However, coming out of the intermission a rejuvenated team took the court and climbed back into the match. The Leathernecks took their first lead of the third set behind a 5-0 run to push them ahead, 7-6. Senior Ann Miller contributed a kill and an ace during the run to help spur the attack. Miller would end the match with 26 kills, a season-high and falling one shy of her career-high (27 vs. Drake, 9/14/13). The night also marked Miller's 1,000th career kill as a Leatherneck. The Leathernecks would never trail from there on, but UIC would continue to tie things up and Western couldn't build a lead bigger than three. Miller recorded a kill to give the Purple and Gold set point at 24-22, and a UIC attack error gave the Leathernecks life with a 25-23 victory.

"Set three was crucial for us. We talked about the game plan and living in the moment," added Hall. "This year is all about point-by-point, play-by-play, because that's all we've got. When we live in the moment we succeed, hands down."

The fourth set was all Leathernecks. After the two teams were knotted up at 6-6, Western Illinois pulled away and would not look back. The team used 6-0 run, including a Miller kill and a Kaitlynn Novak ace, to build a 13-7 cushion. A 4-0 run late in the set cemented things WIU, capped off by back-to-back aces by Jordan Jackson. Melanie Miller set the tone for what was to come in the fifth set with a kill out of the middle. The kill gave the Leathernecks a 25-18 victory to force a fifth and decisive set.,

In the final set, things started close, but certainly didn't end that way. The Flames extended the lead to 9-7, but those would be the final points UIC would score Saturday night. Ann Miller tied things up with a pair of kills, followed by a Novak ace to give the Leathernecks the lead. Melanie Miller and Mallory Gibson teamed-up for a block to make it 11-9. UIC committed three consecutive hitting errors before Mallory Gibson put an exclamation point on the night with a solo block to end the match. In all, the Leathernecks scored the final eight points of the match against UIC.

Ann Miller collected a double-double, adding 11 digs to go with her 26 kills. Her attack led to a match-best .354 hitting percentage. Fournier dished out 42 assists while Molly Murphy added a match-best 21 digs. Jackson and freshman Kayla Ruff added three aces a piece.

"We had some standout performances this weekend and that was especially true tonight. Ann Miller was unstoppable tonight," said Hall. "Not only did she make the All-Tournament Team and lead the team in kills, but she reached a huge milestone by collecting her 1,000th kill. I am so proud of her and can't wait for even more accomplishments to come."

The match closed out play for the Leathernecks at the 2014 UIC Invitational. Earlier Saturday, the Leathernecks dropped a 3-0 decision to Eastern Kentucky. In the match against the Colonels Ann Miller collected a match-high 16 kills, while Fournier added a double-double (29 assists, 15 digs). Ruff led all players with 20 digs in the match.

Western Illinois returns to action next weekend (Sept. 19-20) as they conclude tournament play at the Hoosier Classic, hosted by Indiana. The Leathernecks will face Butler, Buffalo, and Indiana.