KALAMAZOO, Mich. – The Western Michigan volleyball team tied its season high with 13 blocks on the way to a straight-set victory (25-12, 25-11, 25-17) over Eastern Michigan on Friday night at University Arena.
FINAL SCORE: Western Michigan 3, Eastern Michigan 0
LOCATION: University Arena (Kalamazoo, Mich.)
RECORDS: Western Michigan (10-5, 2-2 MAC) | Eastern Michigan (7-8, 1-2)
Gabby Weihe led the Brown and Gold up front, totaling a career-high nine blocks (2 solo, 7 assists), while
Annalise Patchett registered a career-high six block assists. Western Michigan also had four players notch double-digit digs, with
Carley Piercefield's 13 leading the pack.
Elana Erickson and
Izzy Swiercz picked up 12 digs apiece, while
Leah Richmond chipped in 10. WMU's digging and 13 blocks helped hold Eastern Michigan to a .018 hitting percentage, the lowest hitting percentage by a Bronco opponent this season.
Richmond recorded her second straight double-double for the Brown and Gold, handing out 23 assists to go with her 10 digs. Patchett put down a team-high eight kills, while Weihe and
Bri Zimmerman collected seven apiece.
Western Michigan built an early five-point cushion, 8-3, but the Eagles came right back with five of the next six to close to within one, 9-8. With the margin at 13-10, the Broncos reeled off six consecutive points to ignite a 12-2 surge which closed out the opening stanza.
The Brown and Gold kept rolling in the second, taking the frame's first five points. Leading 12-8, WMU rattled off another five in a row to once again spark a big run, this time tallying 13 of the final 16 points on the way to taking the set, 25-11.
Six straight points got Western Michigan off and running in the third set. At 14-7, the Brown and Gold used a 7-2 run to increase their lead to 21-9. The Eagles tallied seven of the next eight, trimming the gap to 22-16. A
Mia Jurkovic kill stopped the EMU run, and after the teams exchanged service errors, WMU's 13th block of the night sealed the victory.
The Broncos hit the road next week for a two-match series at Akron. First serve for Thursday's series opener against the Zips is slated for 6 pm.
