KENOSHA, Wis. – The 13th-ranked University of Wisconsin-Platteville volleyball team (4-5) suffered a pair of five-set losses on Saturday, falling to Colorado College (7-2) and Concordia Wisconsin (3-5) in the final two matches at the Carthage Invite inside Tarble Arena.

Match One
The Pioneers had a strong opening set as they pulled away from the Tigers down the stretch to win 25-18. Junior Bria Johnston paced the team with five kills in the first set as UW-Platteville posted 13 kills as a team.

Colorado College answered by winning the second and third sets to take a 2-1 lead. The Tigers claimed set two by a score of 25-16 and erased a five-point deficit in the third set with six unanswered points to later win 25-22.

UW-Platteville battled back to win the fourth set 25-23 to send the match to a decisive fifth frame. Senior Kierney McDonald was the catalyst in the fourth set win, finishing with five kills and reaching a .625 hitting percentage.

The Tigers pulled ahead in the fifth set, but the Pioneers responded and tied the set at 13 apiece. Colorado College got the final two points of the match, however, to win 15-13.

Johnston (15 kills), McDonald (13), and sophomore Brooklyn Radecke (13) all reached double digit kills in the loss. UW-Platteville finished with 56 kills in the match on a .186 hitting percentage.

Sophomore Laura Boberg totaled a team-high 39 assists, while four Pioneers recorded double-digit digs, led by 18 from Radecke.

Match Two
UW-Platteville led throughout the first set and held off a late Falcons rally to win 25-22. The Pioneers featured a balanced attack in the opening set, getting four kills from each of Radecke, Johnston, McDonald, and junior Kennedy Wenger. That momentum carried into set two, as UW-Platteville led by as many as 10 on multiple occasions en route to another 25-22 win.

Concordia Wisconsin responded by winning the next two sets (25-19, 25-20) to force set five. The Falcons took the early lead, but the Pioneers were able to erase a four-point deficit behind kills from Radecke and sophomore Abby Bauer to tie it at nine. The two teams alternated points but a service error and a kill sent the Falcons to a five-set win.

Johnston finished with a team-high 16 kills, while McDonald added 15 kills on a team-best .243 hitting percentage. Radecke (13) and Wenger (11) also reached double figures in that category. Boberg totaled 55 assists and 15 digs, while senior Kelsey Ewert (27) and Johnston (23) each surpassed 20 digs.

Up Next
The Pioneers will begin conference play on Wednesday night at UW-La Crosse, with the match scheduled for 7 p.m.