Oct. 15, 2010

Box Score

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MILWAUKEE - Kerri Schuh had 15 kills to lead a balanced offensive attack and Morgan Potter added a collegiate-best 39 digs to spark the defense as the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee captured a 25-14, 23-25, 25-20, 20-25, 15-7 win over Green Bay Friday night at the Klotsche Center.

The Panthers (11-8, 8-1 Horizon) finally claimed the up-and-down contest with a decisive win in the fifth set. UWM broke a 5-all tie with five-straight points and was never threatened after that.

Elizabeth Egerer and Melissa Jansen added 13 kills apiece while Natalie Schmitting had 11 for Milwaukee, which remains tied with Butler for the top spot in the Horizon League.

UWM also had 14 blocks in limiting Green Bay to a .093 hitting percentage. Lauren Hintze added 20 digs as Milwaukee tallied a season-high 96 for the match.

Lyndsay Zabkowicz had 18 kills to lead the Phoenix (7-16, 3-6), which has now lost 35 of its last 38 meetings with the Panthers.

"The first and the fifth (sets) we were great, we were really, really, really good," UWM head coach Susie Johnson said. "We actually had some pretty good offense going tonight, we blocked very well and our defense was able to dig some balls. It was kind of an up-and-down, kind of a weird match, but overall the fact is we came out on top and there were a lot of really good things happening."

UWM again showed poise in capturing a five-set win, moving to 5-3 in five-setters this season.

"We really controlled that whole (fifth) set," Johnson said. "It was really pretty cool to see the determination and then the fight to the finish. It was just one point at a time and then picking away, and that was our goal for that game."

Milwaukee made it look easy in the first set, using a 9-2 run to break things open. The lead hit 19-10 on a kill by Schmitting and UWM then closed out the frame with four-straight points. Green Bay then showed it would not go down easy in the second frame, pulling out a two-point win in a set that included 11 ties and seven lead changes. The final surge saw the Phoenix turn a 21-20 deficit into a 23-21 advantage before kills by Zabkowicz and Leah Van Zeeland evened the match.

UWM appeared to regain control of the contest with a late surge in the third set. The Panthers trailed by as many as three points midway through the frame but fought back for a 20-19 lead. After the Phoenix tied the set at 20, Milwaukee scored the final five points to win going away. Three blocks by Schmitting highlighted the burst, which also saw Schuh and Jansen get involved in the blocking efforts.

The Panthers again stumbled in the fourth set, seeing a 14-13 lead turn into a 19-16 deficit. UWM never got closer than two points after that, with a UWM error pushing the Green Bay edge to 23-19. Whitney Schott added a kill to make it 24-20 before another Panther error finished off the frame and sent the match to a deciding fifth set.

Just as happened in the first set, the Panthers were dominant in the final frame. Milwaukee hit .400 while limiting Green Bay to a -.059 hitting clip. The key five-point run was sparked by the serving of Anna Bartz, who had two aces in the run. Bartz also later had a kill when her sprawling dig found the floor on the other side of the net. Then, a kill from Egerer and a block by Schmitting and Schuh finally finished things off.

The Panthers continue a seven-match homestand with a non-league contest Saturday afternoon. SIU Edwardsville visits the Klotsche Center for a 2 p.m. contest.