KALAMAZOO, Mich. – The Western Michigan volleyball team dropped the first set, but rallied to take the next three for a four-set victory (23-25, 27-25, 25-18, 25-18) over Buffalo on Friday night at University Arena to extend its winning streak to 12 in a row.
 
FINAL SCORE: Western Michigan 3, Buffalo 1
LOCATION: University Arena (Kalamazoo, Mich.)
RECORDS: Western Michigan (22-2, 12-0 MAC) | Buffalo (19-5, 9-3)
 
Andelyn Simkins led Western Michigan with 26 digs on the night, and during the third set, surpassed 1,500 digs for her career. The senior libero is the seventh Bronco to reach the 1,500-dig mark in program history.
 
Logan Case handed out 55 assists as the WMU offense hit .307 for the night, its eighth match of hitting .300 or higher this season. Maggie King delivered a season-high 21 kills on a .340 hitting percentage to lead the Bronco attack. Joining King in double-figures were Keona Salesman (17) and Anna Calcagno (11). Calcagno also contributed 15 digs to record her team-leading sixth double-double of the campaign.
 
Mairead Boyle came off of the WMU bench to record a season-high 18 digs, while Reeghan Boyer tallied nine and Case collected eight. Amanda Glanton paced the Western Michigan front line with five blocks.
 
Buffalo grabbed the early advantage, tallying four of the match's first five points. Western Michigan worked its way back to within one on multiple occasions before a 7-2 stretch saw the visitors expand their cushion to 19-12. A pair of 4-0 runs brought the Broncos back to within a point, 22-21. The Bulls were able to stave off the rally, and took the first frame, 25-23.
 
In the second set, seven of the first nine points went to Buffalo. At 10-6, WMU put together a 6-1 stretch to move ahead, 12-11. The two teams then proceeded to go back and forth, with neither leading by more than a single point until UB crept ahead at 22-20. The Bulls got to set point at 24-22, but the Broncos rallied with five of the next six, punctuated by back-to-back kills by Salesman, to seize the second frame, 27-25.
 
With the third set even at 7-7, Western Michigan put together a 4-1 run to grab an 11-8 edge. The Bulls countered with four in a row to wrestle the lead back, 12-11. With Buffalo on top 14-13, the Broncos used a 12-4 surge to take the third set and move ahead in the contest, 2-1.  
 
Western Michigan jumped out to a 6-1 lead in the early stages of the fourth frame. The Bulls fought back to within one, 11-10, but a 4-1 spurt put the Broncos back up by four, 15-11. With the margin at 18-16, WMU reeled off six in a row to get to match point, and moments later, Calcagno ended the match with her 11th kill of the evening.
 
The Broncos continue their homestand on Saturday afternoon as they welcome Akron to University Arena. First serve is slated for 3 pm. For tickets to any WMU volleyball home match this season, visit wmubroncos.com/tickets, or call 1-888-4-WMU-TIX.    

Postmatch interview with head coach Colleen Munson: