MILWAUKEE – The Western Michigan volleyball team had five different players record double-digit kills and three notch double-doubles in a five-set victory (22-25, 25-21, 25-21, 21-25, 16-14) victory over St. Thomas on Friday.
FINAL SCORE: Western Michigan 3, St. Thomas 2
LOCATION: Al McGuire Center (Milwaukee, Wis.)
RECORDS: Western Michigan (7-3) | St. Thomas (2-6)
Leah Richmond fueled the Western Michigan attack with 52 assists and 21 digs to collect her third double-double of the campaign.
Gabby Weihe (.545 hitting percentage) and
Bri Zimmerman (.323) registered a team-high 14 kills apiece, followed closely by
Izzy Swiercz's 13. Annalise Patched notched 11 kills and
Mia Jurkovic picked up a season-high 10 for the Brown and Gold.
On the defensive side, Richmond's 21 digs tied with
Carley Piercefield for the team lead, while Patchett and Swiercz picked up 11 apiece to complete their double-doubles.
Elana Erickson also chipped in 11 digs for the Broncos. Weihe set the pace up front for WMU with five blocks.
After the Broncos got off to a 3-1 start, St. Thomas embarked on a 9-2 run to open up a 10-5 advantage. At 11-6, Western Michigan put together a 7-2 stretch to tie the set up at 13-13. With WMU holding a 20-19 edge, the Tommies tallied three straight points and six of the next eight to claim the opening frame, 25-22.
The two teams traded runs early in the second, resulting in an early 8-6 lead for St. Thomas. Western Michigan answered with a 9-2 surge to grab a 15-10 advantage. After the Tommies tallied three in a row, the Brown and Gold countered with four straight to increase the margin to 19-13. UST closed the gap to two on multiple occasions, but WMU hung on to even the contest at one set apiece.
St. Thomas got out to a 9-3 advantage in the early stages of the third. The Broncos countered with 10 of the next 12 points to move in front, 13-11. With the margin at 17-16, Western Michigan used a 7-2 run to get to set point, 24-18, and moments later, Swiercz put down a kill to give WMU a 2-1 match lead.
With the Broncos holding a 14-12 advantage in the fourth, the Tommies reeled off five in a row to go on top, 17-14. After Western Michigan got back even at 18-18, St. Thomas used a 7-3 burst to send the contest to a decisive fifth frame.
Tied at 4-4 in the fifth, the Broncos used a 6-2 run to build a 10-6 margin. At 14-11, St. Thomas fended off three consecutive match points to draw level, 14-14. A service error gave the advantage back to WMU, and Zimmerman's career-high 14th kill of the night sealed the victory for the Brown and Gold.
Western Michigan wraps up non-conference action on Saturday at Milwaukee. First serve is set for 5 pm.
