CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa – The Illinois Wesleyan University women's volleyball team split its matches on the final day of the Kohawk Invitational at Coe College Saturday, Oct. 19. After stunning No. 17 University of St. Thomas, 3-1, IWU fell by a 3-1 tally to the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse.
Following a tight 25-23 opening frame setback, the Titans gritted out 25-23, 30-28, and 25-23 wins in the next three sets to halt St. Thomas' win streak at 11. Unfortunately, IWU did not have the same fate against UWL, falling 25-22, 25-15, 11-25, 25-21.
Illinois Wesleyan held the edge in nearly every facet off the match, with the exception being a 5-5 tie in aces. IWU notched 58 kills to UST's 56, while also leading in blocks, 13 to 7, assists, 54 to 52, and digs, 77 to 76.
Junior
Jessica McCall (Wayne, Ill.-Wheaton St. Francis HS) turned in another stat-stuffing performance for the Green and White. Matching her total from a night ago, McCall led IWU with 21 kills and added 15 digs. In addition to picking up her seventh consecutive double-double, the Wayne, Ill. native contributed four blocks and an ace.
Sophomore
Dana Kiszkowski (Schaumburg, Ill.-Schaumburg HS) also reached double digits in kills, notching 10 of her own to go along with three blocks and a trio of digs. Fellow sophomores
Madi Corey (Frankfort, Ill.-Lincoln-Way East HS) and
Courtney McAuliffe (Lemont, Ill.-Lemont HS) also got in on IWU's block party, with five and nine, respectively. Corey added 13 digs, five kills, and two aces, with McAuliffe chipping in eight kills.
Sophomore
Amber Juarez (Bloomington, Ill.-Normal U High) finished the match with a team-high 19 digs, while freshman
Grace Sanders (Bloomington, Ill.-Bloomington HS) tallied 14 digs and nine kills.
Against UW-La Crosse, McCall notched a team-best 11 kills, while Kiszkowski and Sanders added nine and seven, respectively. McCall finished out her eighth straight double-double with 10 digs, while Juarez tallied a team-high 12.
IWU begins its four-match homestand Tuesday night, Oct. 22, when the Titans host the Thunder of Wheaton College in College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin play. First serve is scheduled for 7 p.m. in the Shirk Center.
