Box Score MILWAUKEE - Senior Julie Kolinske recorded a career-high 26 kills and the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee volleyball team rallied to win the final two sets in claiming a 25-21, 20-25, 20-25, 25-21, 15-11 victory over Miami (Ohio) University Saturday afternoon at the Klotsche Center.

The Panthers (3-0) earned a hard-fought victory over the RedHawks (2-1) in the fourth set and never trailed in the fifth to claim the title of Pepsi Panther Invitational champions over the weekend.

"It was a big goal for the team to be champions of our own tournament and we did it," UWM head coach Susie Johnson said. "I am proud of the team and to win in five today shows some guts. That (Miami) is a good team, so that was a great win for us."

The Panthers took the first set 25-21 after closing it out strongly. Up, 23-21, junior Nicole Latzig's kill made it 24-21 and then Latzig and junior Kayla Price combined on a block to close it out.

Price was impressive all day, finishing with 52 assists and 14 digs. Senior Taylor Golabowski ended the afternoon with a team-high 22 digs to go with a career-high 10 assists and sophomore Myanna Ruiz added a double-double of 13 kills and 22 digs.

The RedHawks responded to take the next two sets by 25-20 scorelines, forcing the Panthers into a win-or-else situation in the fourth.

It was back-and-forth the entire set, featuring 13 ties and six lead changes. UWM went ahead for good midway, with a Kolinske kill making it 22-19 late. A Miami service error made it 23-20 and a kill from Maggie Dunbar pushed it to 24-20 before another RedHawk error ended it.
 
"That was big," Johnson said. "The team needed to realize that other teams aren't going to just let them win. We had to focus on the intensity level and we did a good job on that."The fifth was all Milwaukee. The team took a 4-1 lead and Dunbar made it 7-5 with a kill and 8-6 on a nice block. Up 12-9, Golabowski's ace made it 13-9 before back-to-back kills by Kolinske ended it.

Kolinske finished the day with a career-best .511 hitting percentage in addition to her collegiate-best 26 kills, topping her former high of 22. With 52 kills on the weekend, she was named Co-MVP of the tournament along with Price.

"Julie was awesome," Johnson said. "She had a very good mentality and was playing to win. Everyone sort of followed her. She was very focused and the ball came to her and she was able to get a ton of kills."

In addition to Kolinske and Price (124 assists in three games), Golabowski (48 digs in three games) was also named to the all-tournament squad.

"All weekend, the three of them were so solid," Johnson said. "They are really pivotal players for us. Julie showed a lot of poise and toughness and she finished for us. Kayla was able to set it up and put us in position to score points. And that is what is so impressive about her, she really had an excellent weekend. And Taylor is basically the captain of our defense and she did an excellent job of getting the team to rally."

Up next, the team hits the road to travel to Springfield, Mo., for the Missouri State Wynn Invitational. The team will play Oral Roberts and Incarnate Word Friday and close out against Western Kentucky and Missouri State Saturday.

Pepsi Panther Invitational All-Tournament Team
Julie Kolinske, Milwaukee (Co-MVP)
Kayla Price, Milwaukee (Co-MVP)
Taylor Golabowski, Milwaukee
Meg Riley, Miami
Paige Hill, Miami
Jenni Fassbender, NDSU