Sept. 24, 2004

Box Score |  Quotes |  Notes

GREEN BAY, Wis. - Karen Fruit had 21 kills to lead four Panthers in double figures as the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee claimed a 21-30, 30-23, 30-20, 33-31 win over the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay Friday night at the Phoenix Sports Center.

In the Horizon League opener for both teams, UWM rallied with a solid performance in the final three games after Green Bay hit .395 to take the opening frame.

Cheryl Hegemann added 12 kills, Rachel Kuebbing 11 and Sarah Moore 10 for the Panthers (5-6, 1-0 Horizon), who snapped a five-match losing streak.

Jackie Rosen led the Phoenix (3-9, 0-1) with 20 kills, while Jill Smits added 12 and Krystle Lange 10.

Five players reached double figures in digs for the Panthers, with Jamie Gabrielson leading the way with 16 and Leanne Felsing adding 15.

The Panthers won the match thanks to a tough game four. UWM looked like it had control of the game late, leading 28-25 following a Green Bay error. But the Phoenix rallied for the next four points, grabbing a 29-28 advantage and moving one point away from forcing a fifth game. But, the Panthers overcame that game point and two others before finally finishing Green Bay off. They tied the game at 31 on a Hegemann kill, took the lead on a Green Bay error off a strong Felsing serve and then finished things off on a block by Melissa Lange and Hegemann.

UWM took the lead in the match with a dominating late run in the third game. Green Bay jumped out to an 8-3 lead and still led 12-9 following a kill by Leah Steinbauer. But the Panthers rattled off four-straight points to grab a 13-12 lead and pushed the edge to 16-13 on a kill by Moore. The Phoenix pulled within 19-17, but the Panthers then exploded behind the serve of Kuebbing. They scored the next seven points to take control of the game and then closed out the frame on back-to-back kills by Fruit.

The two teams split the first two frames, each dominating the game they won. Green Bay won the first game while hitting .395 before the Panthers countered by winning the second game while hitting .405.

In game one, the Phoenix built a quick 8-4 lead and, when a Brittany Hubbard kill pushed the lead to 13-8, UWM called time out. The Panthers couldn't rally, though, seeing the deficit grow to 21-11 following a block by Steinbauer and Smits. Green Bay pushed the lead to 29-18 on an ace by Leslie Kuhn and, after three-straight Panther points, closed out the frame on a kill by Smits.

The Panthers led early in game two and, after Green Bay rallied for a 14-12 edge, UWM rattled off five-straight points for a 17-14 edge. The Phoenix rallied to within 21-20 following an ace by Betty Slinger, but the Panthers scored nine of the next 11 points to win the game going away. A kill by Fruit and a solo block by Moore pushed the lead to 29-22 and, after the Phoenix scored once, a solo block by Fruit closed out the game.

The Panthers have the next week off before returning to action Friday at home against UIC. The match begins at 7 p.m.