RIVER FALLS, Wis. – The University of Wisconsin-Platteville volleyball team scored a pair of sweeps on Saturday at the UW-River Falls Tournament. The Pioneers (13-4) defeated Saint Catherine (3-12) by scores of 25-12, 25-17, and 26-24 before defeating Saint Benedict (7-9) behind scores of 25-19, 25-21, and 25-18.
Match 1
Overall, the Pioneers accumulated 46 kills and 43 assists as they outhit St. Kate's .320 to .106, including a stellar .519 in the first set.
A pair of kills from junior
Brooklyn Radecke and freshman
Lauren Abbott and an ace from junior
Ava Valentin pushed the Pioneers' lead to 17-10. St. Kate's answered with two scores of their own, but the Pioneers claimed the next and final eight points, featuring six kills from four individuals, to take the first set 25-12.
UW-Platteville strung together a few nice runs to kick off the second set, and a pair of kills and a block from Radecke and Abbott brought on set-point at 24-16, with an attack error finishing the set.
The final set was a much closer affair and after six-straight points from St. Kate's, the Pioneers trailed 23-22. A kill from junior
Abby Bauer knotted the set. Tied again at 24, back-to-back kills from senior
Kennedy Wenger secured the sweep.
Abbott had a team-high nine kills behind .667 hitting. Junior
Kennedey Barber tallied 12 digs and sophomore
Delali Amankwa (19) and Valentin (18) each finished with double-digit assists.
Match 2
UW-Platteville was consistent throughout the next match, tallying 18 kills in each set for a total of 54 kills on .303 hitting.
The first set started as a back-and-forth contest, and after a tied match at 16, a kill from junior
Grace Rohde and an ace from Radecke gave the Pioneers an 18-16 advantage. UW-Platteville strung together a pair of three-point runs and a kill from Bauer finished off the set 25-19.
A five-point run which finished with a kill from Johnston gave the Pioneers a 10-5 lead in the second set. St. Benedict started to chip away at the advantage, but a kill from Abbott followed by two more kills from Radecke pushed the Pioneers' edge to 18-12. It wasn't over yet though, and UW-Platteville saw their lead narrowed to 22-21. Fortunately, two attack errors fell just before a final kill from Bauer for the 25-21 victory.
Except for the first point of the third set, the Pioneers never trailed in the final set. Two kills from Radecke, a kill from Wenger, and an attack error gave five-straight points to UW-Platteville for a 21-12 lead. Abbott and Radecke would account for the final two kills of the match and the Pioneers won 25-18 to complete the sweep.
Radecke finished with 14 kills while Wenger tallied 10 kills behind .667 hitting. Barber registered 15 digs and Amankwa accounted for 26 more assists in the second sweep of the day.
The Pioneers will return to action and Williams Fieldhouse on Wednesday, Oct. 7 for the Homecoming Yell Night against Carroll at 7 p.m.
