KALAMAZOO, Mich.  –  Western Michigan volleyball overcame a 6-1 deficit in the fifth set to defeat Mid-American Conference east division leader Miami in a five-set thriller (25-23, 23-25, 25-21, 18-25, 15-13) on Saturday night inside University Arena.

Miami raced out to an early 6-1 lead in the fifth set before the Broncos rallied back with a 9-1 run midway through to tie the set at 9-9. After trading points, WMU and Miami were tied at 12-12 before sophomore Rachel Bontrager earned her 11^th kill of the night to give WMU a one-point lead.

Leading 14-13 after an attack error and block by Miami, redshirt freshman Janell Williams delivered the final kill of the night to clinch the five-set victory, snapping WMU's five-match losing streak. The Broncos clinched their first win over the RedHawks inside University Arena since 2012.

Freshman Sammi Labolle propelled the Brown & Gold with 12 kills along with a staggering .435 attack percentage. It's the sixth time this season Labolle has recorded double digit kills and fifth time she has had an attack percentage over .400.

Bontrager ranked second on the team with 11 kills and neared her 12^th double-double of the season with eight digs. Junior Willow Martin provided an offensive spark for the Broncos tying her season-high with nine kills to along with 10 digs, one service ace and one block.

As a team the Broncos had nine blocks with four coming from Williams and senior Mary Murphy. Murphy ended the match with 44 assists to propel her season total to 1,022. Murphy has now gone over 1,000 assists in each of the last three seasons.

Three players had double digit digs against the RedHawks with junior Kathleen Reilly leading the way with 30, six shy of her career-high. With 1,690 career digs, Reilly currently ranks third in program history. Sophomore Kaley Smith ended the match with 14 digs while Martin had 10.

WMU was dominant from behind the line as Reilly, Labolle and junior Kennedy Potts each had two service aces. The Broncos had a five-set match high eight ace's compared to Miami's five. As a team Western Michigan hit .183 and held Miami to a .126 attack percentage.

The five-set victory snapped WMU's five-match losing streak and improved their overall record to 14-14 and 4-10 in MAC play. The Broncos end the regular season at home next weekend, Nov. 9-10 against in-state rivals Eastern and Central Michigan. First serve for both matches is set for 7:00 p.m.

First Set (WMU – 23, Miami – 25)
Western Michigan earned an early 6-3 advantage on the RedHawks in the first set thanks to a 3-0 run highlighted by back-to-back attack errors from Miami. However, the RedHawks responded with an 11-2 run midway through the set to take a 15-9 lead. The Brown & Gold cut its deficit down to one late in the set that forced Miami to call a timeout before a kill by Miami's Taylor Daignault won the set.

Second Set (WMU – 25, Miami – 23)
It was the same score but different result in the second set as WMU held the RedHawks to a .027 attack percentage to tie the match at 1-1. The Broncos had an early 6-1 lead after a kill by Murphy followed by a WMU block and service ace forced the RedHawks to use a timeout. Later in the set, Miami embarked on a 6-2 run to tie the set at 23-23 before a kill from Bontrager and sophomore Cassandra Smigiel ended the set and tied the match.

Third Set (WMU 25, Miami – 21)
The third set went back and forth between the two teams as neither team led by more than two before Miami used a 3-0 run to grab an 14-11 lead. Western Michigan rallied back to regain the lead using a 3-0 run of their own to gain a 19-17 lead. Down the stretch WMU scored six of the final 10 points to earn the 25-21 set victory and earn a 2-1 lead in the match.

Fourth Set (WMU – 18, Miami – 25)
In the fourth, Miami never trailed as the RedHawks took advantage of four Bronco service errors en route to a 25-18 set victory. Midway the set the Broncos looked to gain momentum with a 5-0 run to cut their deficit down to one before Miami countered with a 6-0 run to extend its lead to 22-15. Ultimately, the RedHawks embarked on a 9-2 run to force a fifth and final set.

Fifth Set (WMU -15, Miami – 13)
Miami dominated the beginning of the fifth set jumping out to a 6-1 lead to force a WMU timeout. Out of the timeout the Broncos rallied with a 9-1 run to seize momentum and tie the match at 9-9. Down the stretch, WMU got key kills from Bontrager and Williams to win 15-13 and snap its five-match losing streak.