MILWAUKEE, Wis. – Behind a balanced offensive attack and strong serving, the Milwaukee volleyball team earned a 3-0 sweep of Purdue Fort Wayne on Thursday evening.
 
The sweep marked the Panthers third straight and fifth in the last five matches. The win also moves Milwaukee to 10-0 in Horizon League play for the first time since 2011.
 
"The offense was very balanced, and it felt like that," head coach Susie Johnson said. "We were able to set a lot of different people and they were executing. I think we are getting more confident and disciplined."
 
The Panthers (16-6, 10-0 HL) took the early lead thanks to timely kills and an impressive serve. Tied 4-4, Ari Miller served up four straight points including three aces and MKE never looked back. Miller added another ace to set a new career high while Madi Malone put away four kills and Abby Koenen and Carmen Heilemann chipped in three apiece in a 25-18 win.
 
Koenen continued to stay hot in the second frame as she added four kills on eight swings to lead the charge. The Panthers hit just .172 with nine kills but took full advantage of nine PFW errors. Up 18-11, MKE closed on a 7-2 run behind two straight Heilemann aces.
 
The offense turned it up in the third set, hitting .481 with 17 kills to cap the sweep. Malone found her groove, finishing the frame with an 8-2-11 (.545) line for a match-high 13 kills. Meanwhile, the Mastodons (5-19, 3-8 HL) had just nine kills along with seven more errors as MKE claimed a 25-13 win.
 
It was an all-around defensive effort for the Panthers, who had at least one dig from all 10 players. Rylie Vaughn led the way with 10 to go with 30 assists.
 
Jess Grabowski added eight digs in addition to four assists and totaled 22 receptions without an error in the win.
 
Malone finished with 13 kills and a .385 attack percentage while Heilemann and Koenen each added nine.
 
The Panthers wrap up their homestand tomorrow with a 6:00 pm contest against IUPUI.
 
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