Nov. 22, 2003

Box Score

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. - Lindsey Spoden tallied a triple-double to lead six Panthers who reached double figures in kills as the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee advanced to the championship match of the Horizon League Tournament with a 28-30, 30-25, 30-26, 30-21 win over Butler Saturday afternoon in the semifinals.

The Panthers (25-4) will now face UW-Green Bay Sunday at 1 p.m. EST in the title match, which will be televised by TV-41 in Milwaukee. The winner will receive an automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament.

Spoden, the Co-Horizon League Player of the Year and reigning tournament MVP, collected her second career triple-double, totaling 12 kills, 17 digs and 50 assists. But she also directed a strikingly balanced attack, as Karen Fruit led the way with 14 kills, Larissa Cattanach added 13 and Cheryl Hegemann pitched in with 11. Sarah Potts and Rachel Kuebbing also added 10 kills apiece.

"This was truly a team win in every sense of the word," UWM head coach Kathy Litzau said. "Six players in double figures in kills really says it all. And Lindsey was awesome. She was so on and totally unstopable. It was just a great performance."

UWM was able to weather a fast start by the Bulldogs (20-12), who were playing on their home floor and won the first game, 30-28, thanks to a .327 hitting percentage. But the Panthers then limited the Bulldogs to just .160 in the second game, .118 in the third game and .060 in the fourth game. UWM, meanwhile, hit .225 for the match.

The Panthers' defensive effort saw five players reach double figures in digs, led by Fruit's 22 and Robin Alt's 21. Fruit also added seven blocks.

Candice Washington had 16 kills and Areal Bienemy 15 for Butler, which entered the tournament as the fourth seed.

UWM swept UW-Green Bay during the regular season, beating the Phoenix in four games in Milwaukee and in five games in Green Bay. The Panthers, who have won the tournament title each of the last two years, have won seven-straight tournament matches and are 3-1 in league title matches. UW-Green Bay has never appeared in the championship match.