AKRON, Ohio – Despite Western Michigan volleyball having three players with double-digit kills, the Broncos fell to Akron in a five-set battle (22-25, 25-22, 13-25, 25-19, 11-15) on Saturday night inside James A. Rhodes Arena.

It was a career night for sophomore Meredith Phillips who posted a career-high 20 kills to go along with her first double-double of the season with 13 digs. Phillips recorded a .283 attack percentage while having one assist and one service ace.

Behind Phillips was junior Rachel Bontrager with 19 kills and 10 digs for her second straight double-double and team-leading eighth of the season. Bontrager now has recorded double-digit kills in 11 straight matches, the second longest streak of her career.

Redshirt sophomore Janell Williams recorded her fourth double-digit kill match of the season against the Zips as Williams registered 10 kills with two digs, one assist to go along with eight blocks.

Freshman Rose Duffy nearly notched her second straight double-double on Saturday with a career-high 48 assists to go along with nine digs. In the past two matches, Duffy has recorded 92 assists and has posted 40 or more assists in three of the past five matches.

In the five-set loss, senior Kathleen Reilly led the way defensively with 29 digs. It's the fourth time in the last five matches Reilly has had over 20 digs in a match. Overall, Western Michigan posted a .231 attack percentage and had eight blocks compared to Akron's, 12.

Western Michigan returns home next weekend for two matches inside University Arena against Ohio on Friday, Oct. 25 followed by Kent State on Saturday, Oct. 26. The Broncos overall record drops to 11-9 and 2-6 in Mid-American Conference play.

First Set ( WMU – 22, Akron – 25)
In the first set of the match both went back and forth as neither team led by more than two. Midway through the set, Akron went on a 3-0 run to extend its lead to 15-11 after the Broncos cut the deficit down to one.

However, the Broncos rallied back and embarked on a 5-0 run to tie the match at 19-19 before the two teams traded points en route to a 22-21 lead for Akron. Down the stretch the Zips won the final three points of the set to grab a 1-0 lead in the match.

Second Set (WMU – 25, Akron – 22)
Akron raced out of the gate to begin the second set, embarking on a 7-1 run early on to gain a 11-4 advantage. The Broncos chipped away at the Akron lead and ultimately went on a 6-0 run late in the set to gain a 20-18 lead, its first lead of the night.

To finish off the second set, Janell Williams captured one of her 10 kills on the night to earn the set victory and tie the match at 1-1.

Third Set (WMU – 13, Akron – 25)
It was all Akron in the third set as the Broncos had a .054 attack percentage in the 25-13 set loss. Akron cruised in the third set, going on an 11-0 run midway through the set to take a 19-6 lead. The Zips closed out the set with back-to-back kills to earn a 2-1 lead in the match.

Fourth Set (WMU – 25, Akron – 19)
The two teams once again went back and forth to begin the fourth set en route to an 8-8 tie during the early stages of the set. Western Michigan pulled ahead midway through the set, embarking on a 5-0 run to gain a 15-11 advantage.

Akron cut its deficit down to two before the Broncos embarked on another 5-0 run to take a 19-13 lead. The Brown & Gold run was highlighted by kills from Charley Andrews, Rose Duffy, Maggie King and Rachel Bontrager. To end the set, WMU got back-to-back kills from Meredith Phillips to force and fifth and final set.

Fifth Set (WMU – 11, Akron – 15)
The Zips controlled the early part of set five, going on a 3-0 run to take a 5-2 lead and forcing WMU to call a timeout. Akron widened its lead to 8-3 before Bontrager stopped the Zips run with a kill.

Midway through the fifth, WMU embarked on a 6-2 run to cut its deficit down to one after a block by Janell Williams made it 10-9. However, Akron responded scoring five of the final seven points to take the fifth set and the match.