STEVENS POINT, Wis. - The Illinois Wesleyan University women's volleyball team opened play at the CCIW-WIAC Crossover with a split Friday, Oct. 21, at the University of Wisconsin Stevens Point. The Titans (13-10) swept UW-La Crosse (11-16) in straight sets, but were held off by 15th-ranked UWSP (20-6) in the nightcap, 3-1.
Illinois Wesleyan began the tournament with a three-set sweep of UW-La Crosse, as IWU used a gutsy effort to close out the opening set victorious, 25-21, before riding that momentum to a 25-11 win in set two.
Set three saw the Titans jolt out to a 6-2 lead early on, but the Eagles clawed back to even the set at 10 all. A kill by freshman Taylor French (Romeoville, Ill.-Plainfield East) kicked off a four-point run by the Green and White that featured an unusual kill from junior libero
Faith Washko (Springfield, Ill.-Sacred Heart-Griffin) and back-to-back aces by French to put IWU ahead, 14-10.
Illinois Wesleyan's advantage held until a four-point run gave UWL its first lead of the match, 23-22. The Titans did not waver despite the late Eagle push, as senior Dana Kiszkowski (Schaumburg, Ill.-Schaumburg) evened the set at 23 with a kill. An untimely error by UW-La Crosse and a junior
Lily Summers (Plainfield, Ill.-Plainfield North) kill polished off the sweep, 25-23.
The Titans' strong showing led to advantages in nearly every statistical category. IWU hit .295 as a team, while UWL finished with a .149 clip as the Green and White collected 39 kills to the Eagles' 32. IWU tallied a whopping 11 service aces, and also held the upperhand in blocks (4-3) and digs (44-41).
Leading the way for the Titans were a trio of upperclassmen. Senior Evy Makris (Orland Park, Ill.-Sandburg) hit a whopping .417 with five kills, while Kiszkowski and Summers finished with seven kills apiece. French added a team-high nine kills in a balanced offensive match for the Green and White, while recording team-highs of five aces and 11 digs.
Sophomore Abby Erdman (Aurora, Ill.-Metea Valley) and junior
Jordan Pierce (Bonfield, Ill.-Herscher) directed the well-balanced attack. Erdman finished with a near double-double with 21 assists and eight digs, while also tacking on a pair of aces. Pierce contributed 12 assists and six digs.
Defensively, Washko was credited with nine digs, four aces, and four assists. Markis and junior Taylor Babec (Joliet, Ill.-Plainfield Central) registered two blocks each.
The Titans were upended in the nightcap, as the Pioneers overcame IWU in four sets. The Green and White took the opening set, 25-23, before dropping the next three sets to finish the day with a split.
An absolute hammer of a kill from Makris gave IWU set-point, 24-19, but UWSP rallied back to force Head Coach Kim Nelson-Brown to call a timeout with the Titan lead trimmed to two, 24-22. An attacking error by the Pointers allowed the Green and White to escape, 25-23.
After trailing early in the second set, Summers' kill ended a gritty rally in favor of IWU to knot the score at 13-13 and bring about a Pointers' timeout. French later crushed a kill down the line to keep the match tight before Makris and Kiszkowski's block pushed Illinois Wesleyan ahead, 22-20. A massive kill from Makris put the Green and White on the verge of a two-set lead, 24-22, but UWSP rallied with four straight points to upend IWU, 26-24.
The comeback in the second set proved pivotal, as UWSP took the next two sets 25-14 and 25-13, ending Illinois Wesleyan's upset bid in four sets.
French finished with a team-high 13 kills and added 19 digs for her 12th double-double of the year. Washko notched a team-best 20 digs, while junior Courtney Heffren (Eureka, Ill.-Eureka) added 17 of her own. Erdman finished with 20 assists, and Pierce dished out 13.
Kiszkowski and Makris tied for the team lead with four blocks each, while Babec tallied three.
As a team, IWU struggled to find consistency on attack as the Green and White hit .075 to UWSP's .153 clip. The Pointers led in kills (50-42), aces (10-4), blocks (8-7), and digs (103-91).
Illinois Wesleyan wraps up play at the WIAC-CCIW Crossover tomorrow, Oct. 22, with a match against the University of Wisconsin-Stout. First serve is scheduled for 12:30 p.m. on the campus of UW-Stevens Point.
