Sept. 13, 2011

Box Score

KALAMAZOO, Mich. - Ashley Turnage had 14 kills and Western Michigan hit .296 en route to a 25-19, 25-21, 25-18 win over the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Tuesday night at University Arena.

Kerri Schuh led Milwaukee (7-4) with 14 kills, but the Panthers hit just .107 as the Broncos (9-1) collected 12 blocks.

UWM's defense was led by 14 digs from Morgan Potter and six blocks by Schuh.

Lena Oliver had a match-high 21 digs for Western Michigan, which also got 12 kills from Gillian Asque.

"That was a tough midweek road match against a very good opponent," UWM head coach Susie Johnson said. "It is a match like this and others we have played these last few weeks that will serve us well in league play. A lot of people have gotten opportunities and we are much closer now to solidifying our lineup and knowing exactly what we have to do to be successful.

Western Michigan scored four-straight points to break a 6-all tie in the first set and then led 12-7 on a kill by Asque. The Panthers did cut the lead back to just two a handful of times. It was 15-13 on a kill by Hannah Blanchard, 17-15 on a kill by Schuh and 20-18 following a WMU error. But the Broncos scored the next four points from there and then wrapped up the set on a kill by Carlee Berland.

The Panthers built a 12-10 lead in the second set following a kill by Schuh but the Broncos reclaimed a 15-13 lead following a block. Milwaukee battled back again to tie the set at 20 on a kill by Rachel Neuberger before WMU scored the next two points to take a lead it would never give back. The Broncos added the final point on a UWM error.

Milwaukee scored the first four points of the third set but then found itself down 15-12 on a kill by Turnage. The Panthers did rally to within 16-15 on a kill by Hannah Blanchard but Western Michigan countered with the next six points to pull away. The Broncos' final point of the match came on a kill by Jessica Brown.

"Kerri Schuh was really good tonight. I am proud of her because she continues to make adjustments and be successful even though every team is keying on her," Johnson said. "Her success will continue to open up other opportunities for people and I'm confident those people are ready to take advantages of those chances as we start league play."

The Panthers head into Horizon League play this weekend, opening action with a home match against Green Bay Friday night at 7.