LOUISVILLE, Ky. – The Western Michigan volleyball team upset the No. 7 seed Auburn in straight sets (25-18, 25-17, 25-19) on Thursday at Louisville's KFC Yum! Center to advance to the second round of the 2023 NCAA Volleyball Championship. The Broncos will play the winner of the second first-round match of the night between No. 2 seed Louisville and Wright State at 7 pm on Friday.
 
The victory is Western Michigan's first NCAA Tournament win since 2008 and eighth in program history. That season, the Broncos won a pair of matches to reach the program's MAC-record fifth regional semifinal. Thursday's win also extended WMU's winning streak to 21, its longest streak since 1983.
 
FINAL SCORE: Western Michigan 3, No. 7 Auburn 0
LOCATION: KFC Yum! Center (Louisville, Ky.)
RECORDS: Western Michigan (31-2) | No. 7 Auburn (20-10)
 
Fueled by Logan Case's 44 assists, the Broncos hit a blistering .367, with Anna Calcagno and Maggie King pacing the attack with 14 kills apiece. Mary Clare Brusek added nine kills, with Keona Salesman contributing eight to the cause.
 
WMU also used the service line as a weapon, tallying a season-best 11 service aces. Andelyn Simkins led the way with a career-high six aces, one shy of the single-match program record.
 
Simkins anchored Western Michigan's defense with a match-high 25 digs, while Reeghan Boyer pitched in nine digs and King added seven.
 
After Auburn tallied the first point of the contest, Western Michigan answered with the next seven to grab a 7-1 advantage. The Tigers worked the margin down to three on multiple occasions, but at 11-8, the Brown and Gold embarked on a 7-2 run to extend the lead to 18-10. Auburn countered with three in a row to shrink the gap to five, but a three-point answer from the Broncos put the set beyond reach.
 
The second frame went back and forth in the early going until WMU broke a 7-7 deadlock with nine consecutive points, which included four aces by Simkins, to open up a 16-7 cushion. The Tigers countered with a run of their own, which shrunk the lead down to 20-16. The Broncos responded by closing the set with five of the next six points to take a 2-0 match advantage into the break.
 
A 5-1 run helped WMU turn a one-point deficit into a 10-7 edge in the third set. At 15-12, Western Michigan reeled off four in a row to boost its advantage to 19-12. The Tigers could not get any closer than five the rest of the way, as the Broncos completed the straight-set victory, its first win over an SEC school since beating South Carolina in 2015.  
 
The win sends Western Michigan to the second round of the 2023 NCAA Volleyball Championship. The Broncos have a chance to punch their ticket to the Sweet Sixteen on Friday night as they take on the winner of the second first-round match of the night between Wright State and No. 2 seed Louisville. First serve on Friday night is set for 7 pm on ESPN+.

Postmatch press conference with head coach Colleen Munson, senior setter Logan Case and senior libero Andelyn Simkins: