DAYTON, Ohio – Behind a combined 25 kills from Josie Noble and Natalie Schmitz, the Milwaukee volleyball team upended the Wright State Raiders in three sets on Saturday afternoon.

The victory marked the 200th career Horizon League win for Susie Johnson at the helm of the Panthers.
 
Noble delivered her best three-set performance of the season, recording 13 kills with a .632 hitting percentage and adding three blocks. Schmitz contributed with 12 kills while hitting .306, helping Milwaukee to a .244 team hitting percentage overall.
 
Kati Goba led the Panthers from the service line with three aces, while Josie Johnson and Milica Tomic combined for 36 assists on the team's 44 kills.
 
Blocks were even at seven apiece, with Noble, Annie Eschenbach, and Bella Lipski pacing Milwaukee with three each. The Panthers limited their errors to just 15, while Wright State committed 27 hitting errors and finished with a .142 against Milwaukee's defense.
 
"Today was such a great team effort," commented Johnson. "Our intensity was great from start to finish … I'm really proud of this group for their response to yesterday's outing."


All three sets were decided by five points or fewer, as Milwaukee took the opener 25-22, claimed the second in extra points 27-25, and closed out the sweep 25-20.
 
Early in the first set, Milwaukee trailed 2-1 but responded with a 7-2 rally to take an 8-4 lead. Wright State pulled within one several times, but the Panthers pushed ahead 18-14 on an Ella Schuetz kill. The Raiders tied it at 22, but Milwaukee finished strong with the final three points, including kill from Noble and Sam Vanda.
 
The second set appeared headed for a runaway as Wright State jumped out to a 7-0 lead, but Milwaukee stormed back with a 9-1 run to move ahead 12-11. The Panthers led 23-19 before the Raiders rallied for six of the next seven to earn a set point at 25-24. Milwaukee again closed strong, scoring the final three points, capped by a Schmitz kill to secure the 27-25 win.
 
Milwaukee never trailed in the third set, though Wright State tied the score five times. The last tie game at 19-all before the Panthers rattled off five straight points to reach match point. After a Wright State kill made it 25-20, Noble's 13th kill sealed the victory.
 
 despite the Raiders tying the score on five occasions. The last tie came at 19 before the Panthers rattled off five unanswered to set up match point, after a kill by Wright State made it 25-20, Noble connected on her 13th kill of the match to seal the victory.
 
Lipski, Schuetz, and Vanda each tallied four kills in the effort, while Tomic added three. Schmitz and Vanda each had two blocks, and Kara Erdmann led the defense with 12 digs. Goba and Schuetz chipped in eight digs apiece.
 
For Wright State, Megan Ayro led all players with 18 kills, and Reilly Zegunis added 15. Lauren Yacobucci dished out 41 assists on the team's 45 kills and finished one dig shy of a double-double. Katie Sowko and Taygan Corstange shared the team lead with 11 digs, while Yacobucci also recorded three blocks.
 
The loss marked Wright State's first three-set defeat in a Horizon League match since Oct. 11, 2019, and its first sweep by Milwaukee since Sept. 24, 2016.
 
Milwaukee returns to Ohio next weekend for a pair of matches at Youngstown State's Beeghly Center. Friday's match begins at 3:00 p.m. (CT), with Saturday's contest set for 10:00 a.m. (CT).