KALAMAZOO, Mich. – The Western Michigan University volleyball team celebrated Senior Day with a 3-0 victory (25-20, 25-20, 26-24) over Akron on Saturday afternoon at University Arena. Prior to the contest, the Broncos honored their two seniors, Sammi LaBolle and Meredith Phillips.
 
Maggie King led Western Michigan (18-10, 11-6) with a match-high 15 kills on a .312 hitting percentage. Julia Marr was also in double-figures for the Broncos with 10 kills. Logan Case handed out a match-high 45 assists, while Andelyn Simkins led WMU with 13 digs. Mairead Boyle and Maddie Arundel chipped in 10 digs apiece.
 
The Broncos broke a 9-9 tie in the first set with four consecutive points to grab a 13-9 edge. Western Michigan stretched the margin out to 16-11, but Akron (10-19, 4-13) ripped off five in a row to level the score at 16-16. The Zips eked out ahead, 18-17, but three in a row from WMU sparked an 8-2 surge which gave the hosts the opening set, 25-20.
 
Akron began the second set on the front foot, opening up a 9-4 lead. At 13-8, Western Michigan surged ahead with a 7-0 run, which included a pair of kills apiece from Marr and Madison Merz. Another 5-1 spurt put the Broncos ahead 21-16, and WMU sealed the frame from there to take a 2-0 edge into the intermission.
 
The Broncos held a 14-13 advantage in the third frame until Akron rattled off six straight points to go on top, 19-14. Western Michigan battled back to within two, 23-21, but the Zips tallied the next point to reach set point. The Zips then committed three consecutive errors to bring the frame even at 24-24, and the Broncos then completed the rally with back-to-back kills by Merz and Phillips.
 
Western Michigan closes out the regular season on Wednesday, Nov. 17, as it visits Northern Illinois for a 6 pm contest.

Post-match Press Conference with WMU seniors Sammi LaBolle and Meredith Phillips and Head Coach Colleen Munson: