BLOOMINGTON, Ill. - The Illinois Wesleyan University women's volleyball team made quick work of Wheaton College Tuesday evening, Oct. 25, at the Shirk Center. The Titans (15-10, 3-4 CCIW) swept the Thunder (10-15, 2-6 CCIW) in straight sets by scores of 25-13, 25-22, and 25-14 to keep their College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin Tournament hopes alive.

Illinois Wesleyan used an efficient attack to dispatch Wheaton, as the Green and White hit .358 for the match with 44 kills on 95 attempts. As a team IWU held a 44-27 advantage in kills, an 8-3 edge in aces, and a 49-35 lead in digs. Freshman Taylor French (Romeoville, Ill-Plainfield East) led the way with 10 kills on a .429 clip, while senior Evy Makris (Orland Park, Ill.-Sandburg) and junior Lily Summers (Plainfield, Ill.-Plainfield North) added eight kills apiece. Makris hit .357 for the match, with Summers just behind her at .353. Sophomore Morgan Harrington (Plainfield, Ill.-Plainfield East) held a team-best .625 attacking percentage with five kills. 

Sophomore Abby Erdman (Aurora, Ill.-Metea Valley), fresh off CCIW Setter of the Week honors, dished out 26 assists to go along with five digs and a pair of kills. Freshman Katie Gund (Pewaukee, Wis.-Pewaukee) added 13 assists and led the Titans with four aces.

Defensively, junior Faith Washko (Springfield, Ill.-Sacred Heart-Griffin) paved the way with 21 digs and a pair of aces. Junior Courtney Heffren (Eureka, Ill.-Eureka) added eight digs, while French tallied seven. At the net, senior Dana Kiszkowski (Schaumburg, Ill.-Schaumburg) notched two blocks, while Makris and junior Taylor Babec (Joliet, Ill.-Plainfield Central) finished with one each.

Illinois Wesleyan overpowered Wheaton from start to finish in the opening set, as IWU quickly jumped out to a 12-6 lead to force a WC timeout. The Thunder trimmed the Titan lead to as few as four, but the Green and White used late kills from Babec, Kiszkowski, and Summers to run away with the set, 25-13. The convincing win came as IWU hit a whopping .387 as a team, while WC was held to -.100.

The second set saw Wheaton hold a slim lead early, before charging ahead 20-17 late. A hustle play by French and Heffren, which resulted in a French kill, got the Titans back on track. The heady play was followed by back-to-back Thunder miscues and a Kiszkowski kill to push IWU ahead, 21-20. After Wheaton clung to a one-point edge, 22-21, Illinois Wesleyan fought back to win the second, 25-22, on a Makris kill.

Wheaton burned an early timeout in the third as Kiszkowski smashed a kill to give IWU a 5-1 lead. The Thunder rallied back out of the regrouping session, but it did little to slow the Titans as a five-point run put IWU on top 15-6. An ace by French, one of eight by IWU in the match, held the nine-point advantage, 22-13, before Babec's tip completed the sweep, 25-14.

Illinois Wesleyan wraps up CCIW play Friday night, Oct. 28, with a pivotal league clash with Millikin University. First serve between the conference foes is set for 7:30 p.m. inside the Shirk Center and will serve as Senior Night for the Titans. IWU will recognize Dana Kiszkowksi, Evy Makris, and Ellie Eager prior to the match with the Big Blue.