KALAMAZOO, Mich. – The Western Michigan volleyball team swept Miami (25-19, 25-9, 25-20) on Friday night to clinch a spot in the upcoming Mid-American Conference Tournament. The victory was WMU's eighth in a row overall and its fourth straight sweep.
 
FINAL SCORE: Western Michigan 3, Miami 0
LOCATION: University Arena (Kalamazoo, Mich.)
RECORDS: Western Michigan (15-11, 11-4 MAC) | Miami (7-18, 1-13)
 
The Western Michigan attack hit a blazing .438 for the evening, a new season-high. Madison Merz led the way with 12 kills on a .647 hitting percentage (12-1-17), while Annalise Patchett hit .450 to match a career-best with 11 kills. Logan Case fueled the WMU offense with 38 assists.
 
Andelyn Simkins posted a team-high 18 digs, with Case and Reeghan Boyer chipping in seven apiece. Merz picked up a match-high four blocks, including a pair of solo rejections.
 
A four-point burst helped Western Michigan grab a 9-4 advantage in the opening stanza. After Miami got it to 9-6, the Broncos notched five of the next six to increase the margin to 14-7. The RedHawks picked up the next two points, but WMU came back with a 7-1 surge to build the cushion up to 21-10. The visitors charged hard in the latter stages to get back to within five, 24-19, but Case dumped one into the back corner to seal the frame for the Brown and Gold.
 
The Broncos raced out to a 9-1 lead in the second set and never looked back. At 16-7, Western Michigan rattled off eight in a row to make it 24-7 and put the frame out of reach.
 
With the RedHawks in front 5-3 in the third set, Western Michigan tallied four straight points to begin an 11-3 run to go ahead, 14-8. Miami worked its way back to within three, 18-15, but WMU countered with another four-point spurt to increase the margin to seven, 22-15, and sealed the win from there.
 
The Broncos wrap up their regular season home schedule on Saturday as they face Miami again at 5 pm. Saturday is Senior Day for Western Michigan, with the program's six seniors set to be honored in a ceremony following the match. For tickets, visit wmubroncos.com/tickets.