KALAMAZOO, Mich. –  Sophomore Rachel Bontrager registered her 12^th double-double of the season as Western Michigan volleyball defeated in-state rival Eastern Michigan in four sets (25-20, 26-28, 25-22, 25-14) on Friday night inside University Arena.

Bontrager was one of three Broncos to have double-digit kills on the night, leading the way with 12. The sophomore outside hitter also collected 15 digs for her team-leading 12^th double-double of the season.

Freshman Meredith Phillips was tied for the team lead with 12 kills, falling one shy of her career-high. Phillips also had five digs to go along with a .200 attack percentage and one service ace. It's the ninth time this season Phillips has earned double digit kills.

Rounding out the trio was of double digit kill performances was freshman Sammi Labolle with 11 and a .333 attack percentage. Labolle now has seven double digit kill performances and has done so in back-to-back matches. The freshman middle blocker at the net had two blocks while having two digs and one assist.

Senior Mary Murphy neared her fourth double-double of the season with a team-high 37 assists along with seven digs. Murphy was also dominant from behind the line, recording two service aces. It's the third straight match that Murphy has had over 30 assists.

Defensively junior Kathleen Reilly led the way with 23 digs, marking her sixth straight match with double digit digs. As a team the Broncos had a staggering .255 attack percentage compared to EMU's, .182. WMU capitalized on EMU errors as the Eagles registered 14 service errors and 24 attack errors.

With the win the Broncos improve their overall record to 15-14 and 5-10 in Mid-American Conference play. WMU returns home on Saturday, Nov.10 for its final match of the season against Central Michigan. First serve is set for 7:00 p.m.

First Set (WMU – 25, EMU – 20)
Eastern Michigan quickly jumped out to an early 8-5 lead after embarking on a 3-0 run highlighted by back-to-back service aces. The Broncos rallied back and seized momentum, countering with a 6-0 run to earn an 11-8 lead. The 6-0 run for WMU was highlighted by back-to-back service aces from Murphy. WMU was dominant down the stretch, winning six of the final 10 points to take a 1-0 lead in the match.

Second Set (WMU – 26, EMU – 28)
The Broncos had a 9-5 lead early after a kill from Labolle before the Eagles rallied with a 4-0 run to tie the match at 9-9. From that point on, neither team led by more than three as WMU and EMU traded points en route to a tie set at 24-24. Late in the set EMU embarked on a 4-2 run to tie the match at 1-1, ending the second set on a service ace by Riley Taylor.

Third Set (WMU – 25, EMU – 22)
The two teams once again battled to a close set in the third as neither team led by more than two before the Eagles used a 3-0 run to take a 16-13 lead. Midway through the set the Broncos rallied back with an 8-3 run to regain the lead at 21-19. WMU captured its second lead of the night after an EMU attack and setting error. Down the stretch the Brown & Gold got a kill from freshman Meredith Phillips followed by an EMU attack error to earn the third set victory, 25-22 and a 2-1 lead in the match.

Fourth Set (WMU – 25, EMU – 14)
Western Michigan defense was dominant in the fourth set holding EMU to a  -.024 attack percentage. The Broncos trailed early in the set before rattling off six straight points to regain the lead and force EMU to call a timeout. Down the stretch, WMU jumped out to a 21-10 lead after a 4-0 run highlighted by back-to-back EMU attack errors. Sophomore Cassandra Smigiel ended the night with her only kill of the match to give WMU its second straight victory.