DECATUR, Ill. (Blugolds.com) – The No. 15 University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire volleyball team suffered their second loss of the season on Saturday, falling to No. 8 University of Chicago 3-2 (25-17, 25-20, 20-25, 22-25, 11-15). Later in the day, the Blugolds bounced back with a 3-2 (20-25, 27-25, 27-25, 22-25, 15-12) win over Millikin University.

Box Score vs. Chicago | Box Score vs. Millikin

Against Chicago, the Blugolds jumped to an early 2-0 lead after hitting .262 and holding Chicago to -.108 in the first set and .244 in the second. But the Blugold offense would only hit .071 in the last three sets as the Eau Claire lost for the first time since Sept. 7.

Three Blugolds tallied double-digit kills in the loss, Madelyn Pashibin (Sr.- Minneapolis, MN/Southwest) led with 19,  Makenzie Bachmann (So. – Chaska, MN) followed with 13 and Abby Volk (Fr. – Willmar, MN/Willmar) with 12. Volk also let the team with five block assists and one solo block. Taylor Scalia (So. – Lake Elmo, MN/Stillwater) recorded 28 digs while Madison Surprise (Sr. - Appleton, WI/Kimberly) had 49 assists.

In the second match of the day against Millikin University, Eau Claire had another five-set battle but this time came out on top.

Pashibin led the Blugolds with 21 kills and hit an impressive .439 while Volk added 15 kills and hit .273. For the match, Eau Claire outhit Millikin .249 to .188. Scalia once again led the team in digs with 16 while Bachmann added 15. Surprise recorded 57 assists 11 digs and four block assists and Krista Meyer (So. – Germantown, WI) and Volk each tallied five block assists. Volk was also credited with three solo blocks.

The Blugolds (18-2, 3-0 WIAC) will be at home this week, hosting UW-La Crosse on Wednesday for Dig for a Cure Night and UW-Stevens Point on Saturday for Alumni Night. Follow the action on Blugold Game Day or on the 'UWEC Blugolds' app on your mobile device.