Sep 6, 2013

Box Score

AKRON, Ohio - Three players recorded 12 kills apiece and Taylor Gruber flawlessly led the offense in her collegiate debut as the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee opened the Akron Invitational with a 25-19, 25-20, 25-18 win over Niagara Friday.

The Panthers (1-3) were dominant throughout the contest, hitting .366 for the match. Milwaukee owned the final stat sheet, recording 55 kills to just 32 for the Purple Eagles while outdigging Niagara 51-31.

Rachel Neuberger, Hannah Blanchard and Julie Kolinske all tallied 12 kills, with Neuberger and Blanchard each doing so without committing an error.

Amanda Sedore had 10 kills to lead Niagara (0-4).

Defensively for UWM, Taylor Golabowski had 14 digs with Gruber adding 11 and Maisey Mulvey 10. Milwaukee also had eight blocks.

But the story of the match was Gruber. A sophomore walk-on who only joined the Panthers last spring, Gruber stepped in for the injured Kayla Price (concussion symptoms) and never flinched, tallying a double-double in her debut appearance.

Milwaukee was not really threatened late in any of the three sets. In fact, the Panthers never trailed in the first set and were in control after jumping out to a 7-2 lead. The advantage was still 18-13 after a Niagara error was 23-18 following a Blanchard kill. A kill from Myanna Ruiz then finished things off.

The Panthers used a late surge to claim the second set. Milwaukee turned a 19-18 deficit into a 21-19 lead on kills by Neuberger, Gruber and Ruiz. The lead was 23-20 after an ace from Ruiz and then a Niagara error followed by a kill from Neuberger finished things off.

Milwaukee then quickly took control in the third set. The Panthers built an 11-7 lead with a six-point run, highlighted by two kills apiece from Blanchard and Nicole Latzig. The advantage hit 14-8 on a Ruiz kill and Milwaukee still led 21-15 on an ace by Golabowski. UWM moved to a 24-16 lead and match point on a block by Latzign and Kolinske before a kill by Kolinske finished things off.

The Panthers' next match at the Akron Invitational comes at 3:30 p.m. CDT this afternoon when Milwaukee squares off with Tennessee Tech.