West Central Reporter

Western Illinois University's volleyball team faced a defeat against Lindenwood in their mid-week match, losing in four sets. Keyana Cruse led the team's offense with 20 kills, while Brittany Wulf and Julianna Schmidt contributed 14 and 9 kills respectively. Schmidt's performance included a team-high hitting percentage of .500. Despite the loss, Maggie Craker achieved a personal milestone by surpassing 3,000 career assists, finishing the match with 49 assists. This accomplishment places her fourth in the program's history for career assists.

The Leathernecks began strongly in the first set, leading 9-4 early on. Cruse initiated WIU's scoring with three consecutive kills, supported by contributions from Grace Kremer, Grace Ulatowski, and Elizabeth Ziegler. However, Lindenwood responded with a 10-2 run to take a lead at 16-13 and extended it to 19-14. Trailing at 22-19 later in the set, WIU mounted a comeback with a decisive 6-1 run to win the first set 25-23.

Set two remained competitive throughout as both teams exchanged leads. After trailing at 18-15, Lindenwood surged ahead with a 4-0 run to claim a lead at 19-18. The teams continued trading points until Lindenwood secured the second set with a final score of 25-23 after another late rally.

In the third set, WIU held a late advantage at 19-18 but could not maintain it as Lindenwood closed out the set on a strong 7-2 run to win it by a score of 25-21. The fourth set saw Lindenwood establishing multiple substantial leads before sealing their victory with a final score of 25-17 in that set. Brittany Wulf recorded four kills during this period for WIU.

With this result, Western Illinois remains in fourth place within the Ohio Valley Conference standings holding an overall record of nine wins and five losses. The Leathernecks are scheduled to host Morehead State for their final home matches at Western Hall on Thursday and Friday; these matches will mark Senior Day for WIU.

For further updates on Leatherneck Volleyball activities and results visit GoLeathernecks.com or follow them on social media platforms X (formerly Twitter), Instagram, and Facebook.