ATHENS, Ohio – Senior outside hitter Rachel Bontrager recorded her 1,000th career dig on Friday as the Western Michigan volleyball team saw its seven-match win streak come to an end in a competitive four-set loss to Ohio (22-25, 25-20, 22-25, 22-25).

Bontrager earned her 1,000th dig in the third set to become the 11^th player in school history with 1,000 career digs. Bontrager also became the first player in school history with 1,500 career kills and 1,000 career digs.

The senior outside hitter registered her fourth straight double-double and eighth this season with a team-high 17 kills and 12 digs. Bontrager has now recorded double digit kills in 14 straight matches and had a .217 hitting percentage with two assists and three blocks against the Bobcats.

Joining Bontrager, freshman Logan Case earned her fourth double-double of the season with 50 assists and a career-high 16 digs. It's the fifth straight match Case has had over 40 assists and the seventh match this season with at least 50 assists.

Sophomore Maggie King ranked second on the team with 15 kills and a .237 hitting percentage. King also had four digs and one block and has earned double-digit kills in the last seven matches. Rounding out the double-digit kills trio was freshman Abi Wilcoxson with 12 kills, matching her career-high.  Wilcoxson also collected a career-high five digs and hit .147.

Case led the Broncos with 16 digs followed by fellow freshman Andelyn Simkins with 14, Bontrager with 12 and reigning MAC West Defensive Player of the Week Kaley Smith with 11. As a team WMU had 81 digs to Ohio's 72.

As a team the Broncos hit .231 while Ohio had a .247 hitting percentage. The Bobcats led the Broncos with four service aces and had seven blocks to WMU's five.

Western Michigan saw its seven-match winning streak come to an end and now has an overall and Mid-American Conference record of 13-4. It was the first loss for WMU since Feb. 18 at Miami. WMU is back in action on Saturday, March 20 against Ohio. First serve is set for 2:00 p.m.

Set One (WMU – 22, Ohio – 25)
Western Michigan cut its deficit down to one late in the first set but was unable to rally as Ohio took the first 25-22. The match was tied at nine early before Ohio went on a 6-1 run to gain a 15-10 advantage. The Broncos rallied back with a 3-0 run of their own and trail 17-15 midway through the first.

Kills from Smigiel and King cut the Bronco deficit down to one before Ohio capitalized off of back-to-back WMU attack errors to gain a 20-17 lead. Once again WMU cut its deficit down to one after a kill from Abi Wilcoxson. However, down the stretch the Bobcats scored four of the final six points to earn a 1-0 lead in the match.

Set Two (WMU – 25, Ohio – 20)
It was another close set between WMU and Ohio in the second as WMU jumped out to a 11-4 lead early thanks to a 5-0 run. Back-to-back kills from Smigiel ultimately highlighted a 6-1 run for the Broncos and a 12-5 lead. Midway through the set it was a back and forth affair as the Broncos and Bobcats went point-for-point.

Late in the second Western Michigan went on a 3-1 run with kills from Bontrager and Wilcoxson to gain a 24-16 advantage. Ohio looked to rally back late, embarking on a 4-0 run before Wilcoxson registered the final point to tie the match at 1-1.

Set Three (WMU – 22, Ohio – 25)
Back-to-back kills from Rachel Bontrager helped WMU earn a 5-3 lead early in the third set. Ohio rallied a few points later going on a 3-0 run to take a slim two-point lead at 9-7. Midway through the third the Bobcats registered back-to-back service aces as part of a 4-0 run to earn a 17-12 advantage.

Western Michigan went on a 3-0 run late with two of three points being Bontrager kills to bring the Broncos to within two. A block by Ohio ended the third set and gave the Bobcats a 2-1 lead in the match.

Set Four (WMU – 22, Ohio – 25)
Once again it was a back and forth battle between the Broncos and Bobcats in the fourth set as Ohio gained an early 12-6 lead after a WMU attack error. WMU trailed 19-15 midway through the fourth set before a kill from Janell Williams cut the Bobcat lead down to three.

The Broncos looked to mount a comeback late in the fourth, embarking on a 3-0 run to trail 21-19. After a bad set from Ohio the Broncos trailed 24-22 prior to a kill from Ohio's Mariana Rodrigues to give the Bobcats the fourth set and the match.