**Photo courtesy of goleathernecks.com**
Week three of Summit League competition saw Western Illinois volleyball (3-13, 2-3) start on a solid note, as the Leathernecks defeated St. Thomas (2-13, 1-4) in a Tuesday road meeting (Oct. 5). It only took three sets for WIU to complete the deed (25-21, 25-19, 25-18).
The win was Western’s first sweep since Oct. 27, 2019, against South Dakota State in a home victory.
“Very happy to get a road win,” said WIU head coach Ben Staupe. “It was great to see the toughness come out and see the team battle. We still need to take care of the ball better and be more disciplined on both the offense and defensive side of the ball. Karli had another strong defensive match, and Maggie played well in front of a big hometown crowd, as she lives about two hours from the campus.”
The first set saw Western take a small lead, 8-6, after trailing, but the Tommies could tie things up a couple of times — reaching 15-15. Primarily led by its hitters, a 4-1 WIU run resulted in St. Thomas signaling for timeout, down 21-17. A few lasting back-and-forth possessions finished out the set, as Peyton Bowman answered on a tip kill to put an end to the opener, 25-21.
After a Maggie Craker service ace began set two, strong defense by Western helped the Leathernecks take a 6-2 early lead. After the Tommies scored three straight, WIU responded with a 6-0 push that led to a timeout break, ahead 11-6. Bowman and Aubrey Putman began to turn up their play on the attacking end, while St. Thomas kept chomping at the bit to trail 17-14 before Western took time to regroup. Brittany Wulf delivered a kill to keep WIU’s advantage going, 20-16. It then became Bowman and Kennedy Davis’ time to shine, as the two standouts combined to help capture a 25-19 decision.
Notching its first lead since the opening frame, St. Thomas reached a slight 6-5 advantage before Putman sent a long kill through the left side to put WIU up 8-7. Wulf continued to give a spark with her presence, as a strike by the first-year upped Western’s lead to 14-11. Kalynn Davis and Maggie Craker were two bright spots for the next slew of possessions, with the Leathernecks finding balanced room to stay ahead even during St. Thomas’ notable efforts. It was Putman who ended up putting the finishing touches on the night — throwing down back-to-back kills to end things on a 25-18 win.
Craker posted a new career-high, single-match showing of 40 assists. Her 11 digs completed a double-double feat, along with two service aces. Putman finished with a team-leading 11 digs, while Bowman and Kennedy Davis added nine apiece. Bowman also assisted on four blocks. Karli Wenzel continued her exceptional defensive play — ending with 21 digs. It has now been four consecutive matches that the first-year has totaled 20 or more digs. The Leathernecks held an advantage in kills (46-36), points (58-45), hitting percentage (.263-.202), digs (63-50), and assists (44-34).
Western will have to quickly turn its attention to South Dakota State for a Thursday evening match (Oct. 7).
***Report Courtesy of Western Illinois University***
