CHICAGO – The Western Michigan volleyball team dropped its first match of its weekend in Chicago, 3-0 (25-19, 25-23, 25-19) at DePaul on Saturday.
FINAL SCORE: DePaul 3, Western Michigan 0
LOCATION: McGrath-Phillips Arena (Chicago, Ill.)
RECORDS: Western Michigan (6-2) | DePaul (6-2)
Leah Richmond handed out 30 assists, setting up three teammates for eight or more kills.
Cassidy Pratley led the way with nine, while
Annalise Patchett and
Izzy Swiercz each notched eight kills.
Elana Erickson picked up a team-high seven digs.
DePaul built a 12-5 advantage at the beginning of the first set. Western Michigan then put together a 6-2 run close the gap to 15-12. At 17-13, the Blue Demons ran off five consecutive points to stretch the margin to 22-13. WMU answered with six straight to get to within three, 22-19, but DePaul countered with the final three points to take the opening stanza, 25-19.
With the second set tied at 13-13, the Blue Demons used a 4-1 spurt to grab a 17-14 edge. The Brown and Gold worked their way back to within one on several occasions, including at 24-23, but the hosts had an answer each time and eked out the frame, 25-23.
The Broncos started fast in the third set, grabbing five of the first six points. At 9-6, DePaul reeled off four straight points to move ahead, 10-9. WMU regained the advantage at 14-13, only to see the Blue Demons use another four-point burst to once again wrestle the lead away, 17-14. Another five-point run helped DePaul extend the margin to 22-16, and it stayed in front the rest of the way to seal the victory.
Western Michigan continues its weekend in Chicago on Sunday afternoon against UIC. First serve is set for 3 pm on
ESPN+.
