MACOMB, Ill. - Playing in front of a home crowd for the first time this fall, Western Illinois volleyball brought the energy to Western Hall for a Thursday evening (Sept. 30) test versus North Dakota State. The matchup would result as one of WIU's most intense meetings of the year, carrying into a five-set, extra-points finish. However, NDSU escaped with the victory (25-22, 20-25, 17-25, 25-19, 14-16).
"I thought our kids played hard and showed some serious grit," said WIU head volleyball coach Ben Staupe. "It felt good to see some of the younger players step up while our roster is short a bit at the moment due to injury. Saturday will be another good test for us, as we try to protect our floor."
About midway in the first set, Emma Norris landed a kill to put Western in front, 15-11. The Davis twins, Kalynn and Kennedy, soon took over with strong attacking opportunities, increasing the lead to 21-15, and the Bison subsequently called a timeout. Plenty of solid hits continued in the period's remainder, with Peyton Bowman delivering one final kill to end things at 25-22.
Set two stayed incredibly close to the edge, sparking 10 tied scores. Kennedy Davis was particularly efficient in the period with four kills on six attacks. After a service error cut NDSU's lead to 19-17, the visitors pieced an 8-3 final push to win a 25-20 decision.
NDSU continued to show momentum once the third set got underway -- tallying up a 9-4 start. Brittany Wulf stepped in to hand her Leathernecks' some offensive firepower (three kills on six attacks) and trimmed NDSU's lead to 15-13. Nevertheless, the Bison had an answer on a 10-4 finish.
Kennedy Davis caught fire late in set four -- striking six kills and three assisted blocks. The Leatherneck offense continued to go through its standout sophomore en route to a 25-19 win, and WIU reached five sets for the fifth time this season.
Similar to set two, the final frame of the night was a series of tied scores and a few lead changes. Isabella LaCoco hooked up Kalynn Davis on a mighty swat to make it even at 9-9. Wulf came around not long after to bump the advantage to 13-11. Successful punches by NDSU tied the margin up, 14-14, and a Western attacking error followed by a Bison kill dramatically ended the night.
LaCoco handed out 43 assists in her first collegiate start -- a new-career high -- and just missed out on a double-double with nine digs. Fellow first-year Karli Wenzel notched her second straight match of 23 digs, including two service aces.
Aubrey Putman was the only Leatherneck to finish with a double-double (12 kills and 13 digs). Kennedy Davis had 18 kills (her second-highest single-game mark of the season) on a .441 hitting percentage. She also added five blocks, while Bowman chipped in six kills and four blocks.
WIU is back in action on Saturday (Oct. 2) for a late morning match against North Dakota at 11 a.m. in Western Hall.
