WHITEWATER, Wis. (Blugolds.com) – The University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire women's volleyball team competed in the UW-Whitewater Invitational on Friday with a single game against Carthage College. Despite falling in the opening set, the Blugolds won the next three sets in a row to earn the 3-1 victory.
The opening set started in UWEC's favor with a 11-6 lead as
Bailey Leeke (So. – Lakeville, Minn./North),
Mya Cinnamo (Fr. – Rosemount, Minn.), and
Avery Pennekamp (So. – McFarland, Wis.) got the offense rolling early. The three attacking underclassmen combined for 12 of Eau Claire's 14 kills in the first frame. The early Blugold lead was matched halfway through the frame by Carthage to tie the game at 16-16. The two squads traded points back and forth as the set continued, but it was the Firebirds grabbing back-to-back points late in the set to earn the 27-25 victory over the Blugolds.
After dropping the opening set to Carthage, the Blugolds battled back in the second frame. After facing an 8-4 deficit early, UW-Eau Claire flipped the script with a 7-2 run to earn aa lead that was never touched. Kills and a block from
Lili Hagg (Fr. – Roscoe, Ill./Hononegah) added to the Blugold momentum. As Hagg continued to swing hard for UWEC,
MacKenzie Houser (Sr. – Pleasant Plains, Ill.) and
Sophia Brown (Jr. – Colgate, Wis./Germantown) found their groove as well. A service ace from Houser and a pair of blocks from Brown pushed the UWEC lead to 22-17. At set point, Carthage recorded two kills before erroring on an attack, giving Eau Claire the 25-20 victory and tying the match at 1-1.
In the third set, the Blugolds spread the wealth between their hitters as five different Blugolds tallied multiple kills.
Charlie Nelson (Sr. – Lakeville, Minn./Farmington) and
Ella Kiebel (So. – Maple Lake, Minn.) held their own in setting up the Blugold attack as the setting duo combined for 12 assists in the third set. Nelson finished the match with a season high 28 assists as Kiebel ended the evening with 18. A strong 6-3 run late in the set by the Blugolds extended their lead to 21-15. Kills from Brown and Cinnamo gave UWEC set point and
Lili Hagg sealed the 25-23 set win with her seventh kill of the evening to give UW-Eau Claire the 2-1 set advantage.
The fourth and final set of the evening saw both squads fight hard down to the wire. A 11-6 start for Eau Claire was eliminated later in the set as Carthage tied the frame at 18-18.
Avery Pennekamp and
Sophia Brown tallied back-to-back kills as UWEC regained their lead, 20-18. The attacking pair helped close the match out with multiple kills to reach 24-22 before
Dorci Walker (Fr. – Marshfield, Wis./Columbus Catholic) sealed the 25-22 set win to close the match out for the Blugolds, 3-1.
Avery Pennekamp led the offense with 16 kills and 17.5 points on the evening.
Sophia Brown finished with nine kills and eight block assists.
The Blugolds (10-10, WIAC 1-3) will enjoy the weekend off before jumping back on the road on Tuesday, October 17
th for a nonconference matchup with St. Scholastica (Minn.). First serve from Reif Gymnasium in Duluth, Minn. is scheduled for 7 p.m.
