Sept. 10, 2005

Box Score |  Notes

MILWAUKEE - Cheryl Hegemann had 17 kills and Leanne Felsing added 14 to help the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee overcome a sluggish offensive effort and claim a 30-25, 30-22, 27-30, 31-29 victory over Toledo on the second day of the Pepsi Panther Invitational.

The Panthers (5-3) hit just .123 for the match and had 35 hitting errors, but posted a strong defensive outing and had just enough to outlast the Rockets (3-4).

UWM limited Toledo to a .077 hitting percentage and forced 37 Rocket errors. The Panthers also had 12 blocks, inlcuding nine by Sarah Moore. The defensive effort was also sparked by Becky Peters (13 digs) and Cheryl Hegemann (12 digs).

"Both teams made a lot of errors but we made plays when we needed to in the fourth game," UWM head coach Kathy Litzau said. "Cheryl and Leanne both played well and we got some timely contributions from other players. We definitely will have to play better tonight against Alabama, but it was nice to get the win."

UWM appeared to be in control after winning the first two games, but Toledo stormed back to win game three and get back in the match. Then, the Panthers jumped to a quick lead in game four, building a 16-9 edge and still leading 27-19 late the match.

The Rockets fought back, though, pulling within 27-24 on a UWM error before fighting off four game-points to knot the frame at 29. But the Panthers responded, as kills by Felsing and Hegemann closed things out for Milwaukee.

Game one was tight most of the way, with UWM pulling away from a 26-25 score with the final four points of the frame. Melissa David had a kill to spark the run, which finished with three-straight Toledo errors. UWM had an easier time in game two, turning a 16-15 deficit into a 22-16 lead with seven-straight points. Two kills by Molly McNab and a kill by Felsing helped close things out for the Panthers.

In the first match of the day, Alabama claimed a three-game win over Northern Iowa to move to 2-0 in the event. The Crimson Tide will face the host Panthers at 7 p.m. in the final match of the day. Northern Iowa and Toledo play at 4:30 p.m.