West Central Reporter

The Leatherneck volleyball team of Western Illinois University (WIU) concluded their participation in the Huskie Invitational with a loss against Milwaukee. The match was tightly contested, featuring 40 ties and 15 lead changes. Keyana Cruse led WIU offensively with 29 kills, while Maggie Craker contributed with 45 assists. Elizabeth Ziegler added to the offensive efforts with 13 kills. On defense, Cruse also led in digs, recording 31.

In the first set, Milwaukee gained an early advantage at 8-4, but errors allowed WIU to recover. After Brittany Wulf tied the set at 13 with a kill, Milwaukee responded with a five-point run to lead at 18-13. WIU managed a comeback attempt with their own run but eventually fell short as the set saw multiple ties towards its conclusion.

The second set remained close throughout, with Milwaukee leading by four points at one stage. However, WIU fought back to tie it at 20 through a series of plays including significant contributions from Ziegler who secured three kills in the final moments of the set for a victory.

In the third set, despite trailing by five points late into the game, WIU managed to tie it at 22 following several key plays from Cruse. Yet they were unable to clinch victory as they lost narrowly at 28-26.

The fourth set mirrored previous patterns of tight competition and frequent ties. A crucial play by Grace Kremer gave WIU a brief lead at 19-18 which was extended by another kill from Cruse; however, Milwaukee regained control and won the set at 25-23.

Despite falling short this weekend, WIU demonstrated resilience through strategic runs across both games during this invitational event. They are scheduled for further matches next Friday and Saturday when hosting Hampton Inn Leatherneck Classic against South Dakota State and Purdue Fort Wayne on Friday followed by UIC on Saturday.