AKRON, Ohio – Western Michigan junior setter Logan Case recorded a season-high 62 assists in a 3-2 loss (19-25, 30-28, 25-21, 13-25, 15-12) at Akron on Friday night to become the eighth player in program history to surpass 3,000 career assists.
 
FINAL SCORE: Akron 3, Western Michigan 2
LOCATION: James A. Rhodes Arena (Akron, Ohio)
RECORDS: Western Michigan (10-6, 2-2 MAC) | Akron (4-11, 1-3 MAC)
 
A native of Maineville, Ohio, Case is the first Bronco to eclipse 3,000 career assists since WMU record-holder Mary Murphy amassed 4,501 helpers from 2015-18.
 
Case added 14 digs to her 62 assists to record her team-leading sixth double-double of the season. Keona Salesman paced the Western Michigan attack with a career-high 20 kills on a .333 hitting percentage. Abi Wilcoxson notched 14 kills, while Mary Clare Brusek and Anna Calcagno added nine apiece. Brusek's nine kills set a new career high.
 
Defensively, Andelyn Simkins dug up 23 balls, while Reeghan Boyer had 19, one shy of her career high. The Broncos established a new season high with 11 blocks, led by Wilcoxson's four (2 solo, 2 assists).
 
An 8-1 stretch helped Western Michigan open up a 12-6 advantage in the first set. The Broncos then rattled off five straight points to extend the margin to 17-8. The Zips used a 6-1 run to climb back to within four, 21-17, but the hosts drew no closer as WMU took the opening frame.
 
Akron held a slim 8-7 edge early in the second set, but an 8-2 surge put Western Michigan ahead, 15-10. A six-point run then helped the Broncos extend their lead to 21-12. Akron countered with an 11-1 charge to move in front, 23-22. The two teams went back and forth until the Zips used a 3-1 spurt to take the set, 30-28, and even the match at a set apiece.
 
The Zips seized an early lead with five of the first seven points of the third set. WMU battled back to briefly move in front, 16-15, but Akron responded with five in a row to regain a 20-16 advantage, and held on from there to move ahead 2-1 in the contest.
 
Western Michigan opened up a 6-2 advantage to begin the fourth frame. With the lead at 14-9, the Broncos reeled off eight in a row to put the set beyond reach and send the contest into a decisive fifth frame.
 
Akron grabbed a 7-4 edge to start the fifth set, but WMU clawed its way back even at 10-10. The set was again tied at 11-11, before the Zips took four of the next five points to seal the five-set victory.
 
The Broncos and Zips continue their weekend series on Saturday at noon. The contest will be streamed on ESPN3.