MADISON – Women's Volleyball hosted a pair of formidable foes at the Todd Wehr Edgedome Tuesday evening. They took on the Carthage Firebirds and the UW-Oshkosh Titans, the latter ranked no. 1 in the latest AVCA Division III national poll. The Eagles (6-2) took down the Firebirds (7-4) 3-1 (25-22, 15-25, 26-24, 25-17), but fell to the Titans (9-0) in a 3-0 (25-17, 25-23, 25-18) battle.
MATCH ONE: EDGEWOOD UNIVERSITY 3, CARTHAGE 1 (25-22, 15-25, 26-24, 25-17)
- The Eagles and Firebirds traded runs early, but a 7-3 run from Edgewood University pushed the hosts ahead 15-11. Carthage drew even late with a 6-2 rally. Tied at 20, the Eagles offense took over the set on a 5-2 stretch to earn the set point.
- The Firebirds took over in a defensive second set. They held the Eagles to a -.242 hitting percentage as they evened the match with a 25-15 set.
- Six unanswered put Edgewood University back on track to kick off the third set. A 6-2 stretch from Carthage tied the set at 9-9. The Firebirds found their groove n offense, a 6-1 burst pushing them up 18-15. The Eagles had the last word in the set, a 7-2 run leaving them ahead 23-21 and finished things off with three kills late.
- Edgewood University's offense took over the match to seal the win in the fourth frame. A 6-2 burst left them up 16-10. A 9-3 haymaker polished off the set and match. The Eagles hit 18 kills with only three errors for a .405 hitting percentage in the frame.
- Edgewood University controlled the match on offense and defense, with a 51-to-33 gap in kills and a 80-to-56 advantage in digs.
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Nida Zukauskaite posted a 16-kill, 15-dig double-double as a cornerstone of the Eagles win.
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Abbey Eivins and
Laila Rasmussen had 20 and 18 assists respectively.
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Madison Amstutz shined at libero with 23 digs and three aces.
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Payton Millin,
Natalie Murphy, and
Marina Hosticka each had six blocks. Hosticka also posted a pair of aces.
- Della Walsh tallied 13 assists and 10 digs for Carthage.
MATCH TWO: NO. 1 UW-OSHKOSH 3, EDGEWOOD UNIVERSITY 0 (25-17, 25-23, 25-18)
- The Eagles hung tough early in the first frame, but a 6-1 sprint from the Titans pushed them ahead 13-7. A 6-2 reply cut the gap down to 15-13. UW-Oshkosh finished the set strong on offense, an 8-2 explosion featuring six kills sealing the set for the Titans.
- A 5-2 run from Edgewood University gave them a 9-8 edge in the second frame. An 8-3 response from UW-Oshkosh gave the defending national champions the momentum back. The Eagles clawed away at the Titan advantage, hanging around down 21-20 late. Three unanswered from both left Edgewood University on UW-Oshkosh's heels, but a kill from the Titans put them up 2-0 in the match.
- A 4-1 start to the third set had the wind in the Eagles' sails, An 8-1 sprint for UW-Oshkosh put them in the driver's seat of the set. While a 4-1 rally cut the gap down to 21-16, the Titans would close out the set and match strong.
- UW-Oshkosh impressed on offense and defense, winning the hitting battle .217-to-.032.
- Samantha Perlberg was outstanding for the Titans. She earned a 13-kill, 11-dig double-double with a .367 hitting percentage on 30 attempts.
- Lauren Grier let all players in blocks with seven.
- Zukauskaite led Edgewood University with 10 kills. Amstutz posted 21 digs.
- Eivins and Rasmussen tallied 14 and 10 assists respectively.
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE
- Amstutz's 23 digs against Carthage were a personal best.
- The loss against UW-Oshkosh snapped a 28-match home winning streak at the Todd Wehr Edgedome.
UP NEXT
The Eagles head to Iowa this weekend for the Loras Invitational. They will battle with North Central and Wartburg on Saturday. First serve is scheduled for 11:00 a.m.
