YPSILANTI, MI ? Toledo was unable to control Eastern Michigan's offense tonight as the Rockets suffered a 3-0 setback (30-22, 30-21, 30-17) at the Convocation Center. The Eagles are one of only two undefeated MAC West teams remaining after the first weekend of conference play. With the victory, EMU improves its record to 11-5 (2-0 MAC) while Toledo drops to 3-10 (0-2 MAC).
The EMU offense, which hit an impressive .345 for the match, was led by senior Becky Reenders with 11 kills and junior Jill Wolosiansky with 10 kills.
In the first game, the two teams battled back forth to knot the game at 8-8. A service error for the Rockets gave the Eagles a lead they would not relinquish the rest of the game. Two kills by EMU senior Katie Bates, followed by another service error for Toledo, led to a Rocket timeout. The Eagles would continue to hit effectively, finishing the first game with a .457 hitting percentage.
The second game saw 11 ties and five lead changes, as EMU finally took command of the game when sophomore Victoria Randolph went back to serve at 23-20. The Eagles rattled off six straight points to take a 29-20 lead. A kill by Winters stopped the momentum, but a kill from senior Kate Sulewski sent the Eagles into the break up, 2-0.
Toledo struggled offensively in the third game, hitting -.057 for the game, while committing 14 errors. The game stayed close until an Abby Reenders kill with the game tied at 10, gave the Eagles the lead for good. Three straight attack errors for the Rockets forced a timeout, with EMU leading 17-12. The Eagles came out strong following the timeout, pulling away for a 30-17 win.
Toledo is back in action on Thursday, Sept. 27 when it opens its MAC home campaign vs. Ball State.
