CHICAGO, Ill. – Kleja Cerniauskaite matched a career-high with 17 kills as the Milwaukee volleyball team swept UIC 3-0 on Saturday afternoon. The Panthers (14-1, 1-0 Horizon League) carried momentum into the Flames Athletic Center, winning their 11th straight contest to help head coach Susie Johnson move to 12-1 in league openers.
 
"Kleja did great offensively and Rylie did a nice job getting her the ball," Johnson commented. "I just asked the team to keep doing what they've been doing. Don't overthink anything and they were just right down to business."
 
Cerniauskiate got the Panthers started early, landing her first three kills to put Milwaukee on top 8-5. The offense continued to shine, hitting .471 with 16 kills in the first frame against the Flames (11-5, 0-2 Horizon League) At 13-10, the Panthers rattled off a 6-1 run and never looked a back.
 
Carmen Heilemann and Cerniauskiate combined for five kills the remainder of the way and Milwaukee grabbed a 25-15 victory in the first.
 
The strong play continued in the second as the Panthers jumped to an 8-3 lead thanks to four Flames' errors. UIC fought back to pull within three at 18-15, but consecutive kills from Kylie Wilks and Ari Miller had Milwaukee back up five.
 
UIC's Kiera James landed a kill to cut the Flames' deficit to 23-20, but two crucial errors handed Milwaukee a 25-20 win. The Panthers' defense was stout yet again in the second, holding UIC to a .086 attack percentage, the Flames' second straight frame under .100.
 
After earning an early lead in the third, UIC used a 4-0 run to battle back for a 7-7 tie. The offense came back alive as Shari Volpis, Heilemann, and Cerniauskaite landed kills and put Milwaukee back on top 14-11.
 
Jenna Miller and A. Miller then put away two more kills, putting Milwaukee up 19-11, but the Flames would not quit. UIC responded with three straight points and another 4-1 run later to cut it to 23-21, but a Flames' error and a kill from A. Miller handed the Panthers their 11th straight victory.
 
Cerniauskiate was unstoppable in the first set as she hit .875 with seven kills on her way to matching a career-high with 17. The sophomore also tallied a pair of block assists as she contributed to 19 points.
 
Rylie Vaughn dished up her ninth double-double of the season as she recorded 23 assists and a team-high 12 digs. Jenn Dore was also near a double-double of her own as she tallied 18 assists and eight digs.
 
A. Miller was efficient on Saturday, putting away nine kills at a .368 clip.
 
Jess Grabowski dug up 11 balls as she now has at least 10 in every match this season.
As a team, Milwaukee tallied 14 total blocks, their second most this season.
 
Next, the Panthers head north to face Green Bay tomorrow, September 29. Live stats and video links for the Horizon League matchup can be found on MKEPanthers.com.