Sept. 14, 2012

Box Score

MILWAUKEE - The University of Iowa scored the final three points of the fifth set to claim a 25-23, 25-21, 12-25, 17-25, 15-12 win over the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Friday on the first day of the Marquette Invitational.

After fighting back from being two sets down, UWM led 10-9 in the fifth frame. Then, right after Milwaukee's Sammi Herron tied the set at 12, Iowa countered with the next three points to pick up the win.

UWM (5-6) placed four players in double figures in kills and dominated the third and fourth sets in turning the match around. But, the Panthers could not pull out the fifth frame, falling in a five-set match for the fourth time this season.

"We're good enough to hang with teams but we're just panicking at a critical moment, like at the end of the fifth set," Milwaukee head coach Susie Johnson said. "We talked about staying together and to keep pushing, because these are good teams we're playing against. We are proving in certain sets that we are better and then we're not finishing."

Iowa made a final late surge to pull out the first set. The Hawkeyes grabbed a 10-8 lead in the early going of the frame before Milwaukee went ahead 13-12 on a tip-kill by Kayla Price. Neither team was able to claim much of an edge from there, with UWM jumping ahead 21-20 on a kill by Rachel Neuberger and back ahead 23-22 on a Hawkeye hitting error. But Iowa struck back with the next three points, sealing the set on an ace by Alessandra Dietz.

The Panthers were close the entire second set but could never get over the hump. Milwaukee led 14-12 after a block by Neuberger but the Hawkeyes struck back with the next four points to claim some control. The Iowa lead hit 19-15 on a UWM hitting error, though a kill by Elizabeth Egerer pulled the Panthers back to within 22-20. It was still just 23-21 Iowa after a hitting error but the Hawkeyes claimed the final two points of the frame to take control of the match.

Milwaukee got right back in the match with a dominant performance in the third set. UWM ran off five-straight points to build a 10-4 lead and then went up 16-7 on a kill by Neuberger. The Panthers extended their advantage to 22-11 on two-straight kills by Julie Kolinske and went up 24-11 on a service ace from Maisey Mulvey. Another kill by Kolinske then finished things off for Milwaukee.

UWM kept the momentum in the fourth set. Iowa actually had an early lead but Milwaukee took the lead for good at 17-16 when an overpass by Egerer found the floor. That sparked the Panthers, who went up 19-16 on a block by Egerer and Neuberger and then never looked back. The lead hit 24-17 on a fourth-straight Hawkeye error and then Herron finished the frame with a kill.

The score in the fifth frame was back and forth. Milwaukee led 4-3 on a kill by Herron and went back up 10-9 on an ace by Kolinske. Then, after Herron tied the frame at 12 with a hard kill, Iowa struck back with the next three points - the final two coming from Chante Thompson - to finish off the win.

UWM plays two more matches in the Marquette Invitational Saturday. The Panthers play Pacific at 11 a.m. before squaring off with the host Golden Eagles at 7 p.m.