AKRON, Ohio – Redshirt sophomore setter
Leah Richmond collected her fourth straight double-double to help the Western Michigan volleyball team rebound from a five-set loss to Akron on Thursday and defeat the Zips in four sets (26-24, 27-25, 15-25, 25-20) on Friday evening.
FINAL SCORE: Western Michigan 3, Akron 1
LOCATION: James A. Rhodes Arena (Akron, Ohio)
RECORDS: Western Michigan (11-6, 3-3 MAC) | Akron (7-11, 2-4)
Richmond handed out 47 assists and added 14 digs, setting up three Broncos for double-digit kills.
Cassidy Pratley led the WMU attack with a career-high 15 kills while hitting .323 for the evening.
Annalise Patchett tallied 13 kills and
Gabby Weihe put down 12 kills on a .455 hitting percentage.
Elana Erickson and
Carley Piercefield spearheaded the defensive effort with 16 digs apiece.
Akron ran out to a 13-5 advantage in the first set. WMU responded with three straight to trim the margin to 13-8. At 22-17, the Broncos used another three-point burst to ignite a 9-2 surge to take the set, 26-24.
The Zips held the early edge in the second as well. At 11-8, Western Michigan ran off eight of the next 10 points to climb in front, 16-13. With the Brown and Gold at set point, 24-21, Akron rattled off four consecutive points to turn the tide and reach set point at 25-24. The Broncos dug deep and answered with the next three to grab the set, 27-25, and a 2-0 match lead.
Akron notched six of the first seven points in the third stanza. The Broncos countered, clawing their way back even at 10-10. The hosts then ripped off six consecutive points and led by no fewer than five for the remainder of the set to send the contest to a fourth frame.
A 5-1 stretch helped the Broncos build a 12-6 advantage in the fourth set. Akron closed the gap to three on multiple occasions, including at 17-14, but Western Michigan used a four-point burst to increase the margin to 21-14. The Zips closed to within three once again at 22-19 before WMU picked up three of the night's final four points to seal the victory.
The Broncos begin a four-match homestand next weekend with a pair of contests against Toledo. The first match against the Rockets is slated for 6 pm on Friday evening. For tickets to any WMU volleyball home match, visit
wmubroncos.com/tickets.
