MILWAUKEE – In a closely contested four-set matchup, it was the visiting South Alabama Jaguars who came away with a victory in the finale of the 2025 Panther Invitational over Milwaukee on Sunday afternoon at the Klotsche Center.
 
The difference in the match proved to be miscues by Milwaukee, which finished with 31 attacking errors, allowing South Alabama to amass 16 blocks. The Jaguars also put together a strong service game, delivering nine aces to just one by Milwaukee.
 
Alexa Strandberg had 11 blocks for the visitors, along with five kills and two aces. Cambria Gaier had 17 kills and three aces, while Sarah Gooch finished her strong weekend with a 13-kill effort.
 
Milwaukee did have the advantage in kills at 53-48, led by Natalie Schmitz and Bella Lipski with 17 and 11 kills, respectively. Sam Vanda added eight kills, while Annie Eschenbach added six and Hailey Hutchings chipped in with four.
 
The Panthers had 50 assists on their 53 kills, with Josie Johnson leading the way with 24, followed by Milica Tomic at 17.
 
Defensively, the 11 Panther blocks marked a season-best, with Lipski collecting three solo and three assisted blocks. Vanda also had three assisted blocks on the afternoon. Kara Erdmann had 23 digs on the match to lead all players, including one that landed on the opposite side for just her fifth career kill.
 
"We're continuing to make progress in many facets of the game with our young group," said head coach Susie Johnson. "The experiences we have are critical to our growth, both individually and as a team."
 
Milwaukee won the opening set 25-21, finishing it off with three unanswered points to secure the win. South Alabama led 12-6 in the second, and despite a rally by the Panthers, MKE was unable to get much closer, as the Jaguars evened the match at one set apiece with a 25-20 win.
 
Both teams strung together bursts of 3-4 points at a time into the latter stages of the third set with South Alabama ahead by a 23-21 score. The teams traded points to the finish, with the Jaguars edging out a 25-23 victory. The fourth followed a similar script, with the Panthers pulling within one at 23-22 late, but a kill by South Alabama and a block by the Jaguars sealed the win.
 
Milwaukee faces a busy week ahead, beginning with a matchup against Wisconsin on Tuesday evening at 7:00 p.m. in Madison at the UW Field House.