BLOOMINGTON, Ill. – With the No. 2 seed secured in the UAA Tournament, the No. 4 Washington University in St. Louis volleyball team stepped back into non-conference play on Saturday afternoon at the IWU Classic. WashU opened with a 3-0 sweep of No. 14 Wis.-Eau Claire before knocking off top-ranked and host No. 1 Illinois Wesleyan, 3-2.
WashU 3, UWEC 0
The first, and closest, set saw the teams stay within one point of each other until a five-point run saw the Blugolds jump ahead 11-7. UWEC would maintain its lead until late in the set.
Trailing 19-15, the Bears used a 5-0 run of their own to regain the lead, 20-19. The Blugolds responded with a quick 4-1 run to lead 23-21. However, WashU would score the final four points, capped by a block from sophomore Abby Krause, to take the set 25-23 and lead the match, 1-0.
UWEC reversed the momentum from the end of the first set to stake itself to an 8-3 lead to begin the second set. A 6-1 stretch by the Bears tied the set at 9-9. Going nearly point for point, the teams saw the score not get away from either program as the score would be tied at 19-19.
A 5-0 run by WashU gave them a set point at 24-19. After saving one set point, the Blugolds could not complete the comeback as a kill from first-year Anya Mikhailenko closed out the set, 25-20.
Just like the first two sets, the start of the third was no different, with both teams staying within one to two points of each other and trading leads. Eventually, the Bears, leading 10-9, went on a 4-0 run and a pair of 3-0 runs to pull ahead 20-11.
The attempts by UWEC to chip away saw them get back within five at 23-18, but back-to-back kills by sophomore Nia Jones and Krause closed out the set, 25-18, and the match, 3-0.
Senior Leah Oyewole led the Bears with nine kills, with Krause finishing with eight kills. Senior Naya Ohuabunwa, Jones, and first-year Emma McGough each finished with seven kills in the sweep.
Mikhailenko dished out 26 assists while she had 18 digs for her 15th double-double of the season. Senior Ellie Laird (18 digs) and Krause (13 digs) also reached double-digit digs.
WashU 3, IWU 2
WashU continued its momentum from its first match of the day as it took on the top-ranked team in Illinois Wesleyan in the first set. The Bears would quickly take a 7-2 lead over the Titans on a block by Krause. Leading 12-6, WashU surged ahead, scoring the next nine points to put the set out of reach, 21-6.
The Titans responded by trying to chip away, scoring nine of the next 13 points. However, the set was out of hand and a Titan attack error sealed the first set for WashU, 25-15.
It was back and forth between the two teams to start the second, with IWU holding a slim 6-5 lead. However, they would slowly expand the lead to three, 13-11, before the Titans went on an 11-3 run to pull ahead 21-13.
The Bears would then outscore the Titans 5-4 the rest of the set, but the difference was too much as IWU tied the match, 1-1, with a 25-18 second-set win.
The biggest lead in the third set for either team was when WashU led 4-1. The rest of the way, the teams stayed within two points of each other. The Titans were able to sneak ahead and get the first set point at 24-23. The Bears would save that and one more before IWU took the set 27-25 and the match lead, 2-1.
The fourth set would see the Titans keep slightly ahead to start, but the Bears would not let them pull away. Trailing 11-9, WashU went on a 7-2 run to take its own two-point lead on a kill by Ohuabunwa, 15-13.
It was a lead that the Bears gained and did not give up despite IWU pulling within one at 16-15. The Bears would get the first set point on a service ace from Laird, 24-20. However, after saving one, the Titans misplayed a ball over, allowing McGough to get a kill to level the match at 2-2 by claiming the fourth set, 25-21.
In the deciding fifth set, it was a quick start for WashU as the Bears took the first five points with two each from Oyewole and Ohuabunwa and a service ace from Mikhailenko. After the Titans pulled within two at 6-4, WashU called a timeout and would go on a quick 4-2 run to jump ahead and force IWU into a timeout, trailing 10-6.
The Bears responded, taking three of the next four points to get within two of the match at 13-7. A service error by WashU was followed by a kill from Oyewole to put the Bears up 14-8. Three points by IWU forced the Bears to call their final timeout. It paid off as Oyewole recorded her 19th kill of the match as WashU claimed the win over the Titans, 3-2, with a 15-11 fifth-set win.
In addition to Oyewole's kills, Ohuabunwa finished with 22 on .450 hitting, while Krause finished with 14 kills. Mikhailenko tallied 53 assists and 19 digs for her 16th double-double of the season. She was one of three Bears in double-digit digs, with Laird notching the match-high 25 and sophomore Avery Reed finishing with 10.
For their play in the two matches both Oyewole and Mikhailenko were named to the All-Tournament Team
WashU returns home on Wednesday, Nov. 4, for its final home match of the regular season when it hosts Illinois College. First serve with the Lady Blues is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. inside the Field House.
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