Oct. 11, 2009

Box Score

DAYTON, Ohio - Shaunda Sandifer and Becca Awaa collected 17 kills apiece as Wright State claimed a 25-22, 25-27, 25-17, 25-16 win over the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Sunday afternoon at McLin Gymnasium.

Kerri Schuh led UWM (5-14, 2-6 Horizon) with 15 kills and a .375 hitting clip. Maddie Sueppel added eight kills and six blocks while Natalie Schmitting had seven kills and seven blocks for Milwaukee, which has lost five-straight matches.

Wright State (10-11, 2-6) hit .264 in the match and had four players reach double figures in kills, with Jessica Woods adding 13 and Lexi Leonhard 10 to the 34 combined tallies from Sandifer and Awaa.

UWM got itself back in the match by pulling out the second set, but Wright State rode fast starts in the third and fourth frames to its second-straight league win.

The Panthers fell behind in the first set and could never completely recover. After building an early 7-3 lead, UWM found itself down 17-12 after an 8-1 run by the Raiders. WSU eventually led 24-18, only to see Milwaukee rattled off four-straight points to pull within 24-22. But, a kill by Awaa put Wright State ahead in the match.

UWM pulled out a tight win in the second set. Milwaukee led by as many as two points in the frame but found itself down, 23-22, after an error. Then, after letting a pair of set-point chances slip away, UWM evened the match thanks to Schmitting, who had two blocks and a kill during the final surge.

Wright State reclaimed control of the match with a decisive win in the third set. The Raiders scored the first five points and eventually led 8-2 after a kill by Woods. Milwaukee never got closer than three points the rest of the way, with kills by Chanel Gillies and Sandifer wrapping things up for the Raiders.

Milwaukee again fell down quickly in the fourth set, with an ace from Woods putting Wright State up 6-1. UWM did pull back within 9-8 on a block by Sueppel and again within 10-9 on a WSU error. But, the Raiders scored the next five points to reclaim control and never looked back. WSU closed out the match with a 4-0 run, highlighted by an ace from Leonhard and a block by Woods and Gillies.

After playing seven of its first eight league matches on the road, the schedule turns in Milwaukee's favor during the second half of the season. The Panthers begin that part of the slate by hosting UIC and Loyola next weekend at the Klotsche Center.