Volleyball drops a pair of matches at UW-Whitewater Triangular

WHITEWATER, Wis. – The Concordia University Wisconsin volleyball team dropped a pair of non-conference matches at the UW-Whitewater Triangular Friday. The Falcons opened the day by falling 3-0 against North Central College before being defeated by No. 13 UW-Whitewater, 3-0, in the nightcap.

Junior Hannah Griffiths had six kills in each match to pace the Falcon offense. Junior Carley Valentine recorded a pair of double-digit assist matches and finished the day with 26.

In the other match of the triangular UW-Whitewater swept North Central 3-0. The Warhawks won the three sets by scores of 25-16, 25-17 and 25-21.

Match One: NCC 3, CUW 0

The match against the Cardinals did not start well for CUW as it fell by identical 15-25 scores in each of the first two sets. The Falcons played better in the final set, but it wasn't enough to force a fourth as NCC won 25-22 to complete the sweep.

CUW had a -.047 attack percentage against the Cardinals, largely in part to a -.226 attack percentage in the opening set. NCC countered with a .168 attack percentage.

Griffiths (Antigo, Wis.) recorded six kills against the Cardinals to lead CUW in the opening match. She also finished with a team-best .267 attack percentage. Valentine (De Pere, Wis.) dished out 11 assists for the Falcons, while adding eight digs. Sophomore Kelsey Paramore (Tomahawk, Wis.) led CUW with nine digs and sophomore Jessica Eggebrecht (Napoleon, Ohio) and junior Britta Duchow (Potter, Wis.) each added five kills.

North Central was led by Danielle Williams as she finished with a match-high 11 kills. Laura Kluk recorded 32 assists for the Cardinals, while Jessie Fiala and Katie Connolly added 12 and 10 digs, respectively.

Match Two: No. 13 UWW 3, CUW 0

Playing against one of the top teams in the Midwest, CUW fell 3-0 to the Warhawks in their second match of the evening. Just like in the opener, the Falcons struggled out of the gates as they dropped the opening set, 16-25.

CUW improved in each set against UWW as they fell 25-21 in set number two and dropped a close, 25-27, third and final set. The Falcons led 22-15 in the final set but the Warhawks showed why they find themselves in the top 25, rallying for the sweep.

Paramore had a strong game defensively as she tallied 15 digs against the talented Whitewater offense. Valentine added four kills to go along with her team-best 15 assists, while junior Gabrielle VanBeaver (Green Bay, Wis.) and senior Ashley Faber (Kewaskum, Wis.) each posted two block assists in the loss.

UW-Whitewater got a match-best 11 kills from Kristen Ruchti who also finished with an impressive .500 attack percentage. Staci Hasler kept the UWW hitters happy all night by handing out 33 assists, while Lauren Pfeifer and Jaclyn Krizka added 11 and 10 digs, respectively.

CUW (2-2) will return to action Tuesday when they play a pair of matches in Madison, Wis. The Falcons will take on Edgewood College in a Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference match at 4 p.m. before battling with Maranatha Baptist Bible College in a non-conference match at 6 p.m.