TOLEDO, Ohio – Western Michigan redshirt freshman Leah Richmond eclipsed the 1,000-assist mark on Saturday and helped lift the Broncos to a four-set win (25-12, 27-29, 25-19, 25-22) at Toledo.
 
FINAL SCORE: Western Michigan 3, Toledo 1
LOCATION: Savage Arena (Toledo, Ohio)
RECORDS: Western Michigan (13-14, 10-4 MAC) | Toledo (18-8, 9-5)
 
Richmond handed out 42 assists for the afternoon, picking up the 1,000th of her career in the second set. She also added 15 digs to register her 21st double-double of the season.
 
Four Broncos tallied double-digit kills, with Mary Clare Brusek's 14 kills on a .419 hitting percentage leading the charge for the Brown and Gold. Joining Brusek in double-figures were Annalise Patchett (13), Mia Jurkovic (11) and Amanda Glanton (10).
 
Reeghan Boyer once again led WMU's defensive effort, registering a team-leading 19 digs in the contest. Richmond (15), Elana Erickson (14) and Maddie Kmetz (11) all posted double-digit digs as well for Western Michigan.
 
The Broncos were out of the gates quickly, tallying six of the contest's first seven points. With the margin at 13-8, Western Michigan used a three-point burst to increase the cushion to 16-8. The lead never dipped below seven for the rest of the frame, and WMU ran off five consecutive points to put it beyond reach.
 
A 4-1 spurt gave Toledo a 10-7 edge in the second set. At 13-11, the Broncos went on a 6-1 run to move in front, 17-14. The Rockets came right back with four in a row to wrestle the lead away, 18-17. The seesaw battle continued, with a three-point Western Michigan burst putting the visitors ahead once more, 21-19. The Brown and Gold had a string of set point opportunities, starting at 24-23, but UT had an answer each time and eventually evened the contest at 1-1 with a 29-27 set victory.
 
WMU started fast again in the third, racing out to a 9-3 advantage. Trailing 13-8, the Rockets picked up three straight points to close the gap to 13-11. The Broncos countered with six of the next eight to restore their six-point cushion, 19-13. Western Michigan was able to keep UT at arm's length from there and take a 2-1 edge into the fourth.
 
The two teams traded runs in the early stages of the fourth, but canceled each other out to end up tied at 14-14. Western Michigan then notched seven of the next 10 points to grab a 21-17 lead. The Rockets immediately responded with four in a row to draw level once again, 21-21. Glanton broke the tie with a kill, and WMU tallied four of the final five points of the night to seal the victory.  
 
Western Michigan returns to University Arena for its final home matches of the regular season next Friday and Saturday against Kent State. First serve for Friday's series opener against the Golden Flashes is slated for 6 pm. For tickets to any WMU volleyball home match, visit wmubroncos.com/tickets.