MACOMB, Ill. - Back on its home floor, and in front of loved ones for the first time this season, Western Illinois volleyball (0-10, 0-9) faced Omaha (7-4, 6-3) in a Sunday match that lasted four sets. The Mavericks defeated WIU in game one of the Summit League week five series (25-21, 20-25, 13-25, 20-25). 

A 6-0 start opened the first set nicely for the Leathernecks, as Aubrey Putman and Mariah Mitchell steadied the scoring with a handful of kills. A service ace from Erika Moore increased the Western lead to 10-4, and the team's attacking game continued to stay solid. Omaha worked a 6-1 run to make it close and cut WIU's lead to 21-17. However, two smart kills from Cassie Hunt and a final attacking error from the Mavericks ended the first in WIU's hands, 25-21.

Omaha began the second set at a faster pace and went ahead 10-3 before Western called its first timeout of the match. Various contributions from different Leathernecks helped edge their way back into the period, down 18-11. Moore delivered another service ace to spark a small run and shrink Omaha's lead to 20-17. Kennedy Davis spiked three consecutive kills afterward, but the Mavericks found a way to maintain their small lead and finish 25-20.

Similar to the previous frame, Omaha jumped to a quick lead in set three: 10-4. The Mavericks ended up surrendering a couple of errors not long after, and Davis netted another kill to have WIU trailing 16-10. Nevertheless, Omaha totaled points on seven of its last eight possessions to take the third, 25-13. 

Set four turned into an increase of back-and-forth play, with eight total ties. Mitchell went off to give WIU its first four points - all of which happened in a row on kills. A 3-0 run gave Omaha some small breathing room before Mitchell racked up two more scores, with Western down by one (13-12). Peyton Bowman swung hard to tie all at 14, but Omaha responded with another short run, leading to a timeout. Straight out of the break, WIU scored twice, and Putman tallied two more strong attacks - cutting the deficit to 21-20. A 5-0 Mavericks run ended the afternoon.

Putman posted a double-double of 13 kills and 12 digs. Mitchell was not far behind with 12 kills, and Hunt contributed a team-high 28 assists. Davis and Mitchell heavily protected the front line by assisting on five and four blocks, respectively. The former also added seven kills. Emma Norris had four kills and eight digs. Moore and Gabby DePersio notched seven digs apiece. 

Sunday's match was the first opportunity for families of WIU's student-athletes to cheer on from the Western Hall stands. The new attendance policy, implemented earlier this week on Wednesday (Feb. 24), allows a 50-person limit inside the Leathernecks' home arena. However, visiting fans of opposing teams are not permitted, and a WIU player pass list will allow access for family members only.

Game two of the series is scheduled for tomorrow (March 1) at 2 p.m. in Western Hall.