TOLEDO, OH – Toledo (11-9, 4-2 MAC) remained perfect in five-set matches this season with a 3-2 (26-24, 16-25, 16-25, 25-20, 15-10) victory over West Division foe Western Michigan (10-9, 3-3 MAC). The triumph was the Rockets' fourth straight in conference action and gives UT a 6-0 win-loss mark in matches that go the distance.
Toledo utilized a balanced attack to thwart the Broncos with senior Lauren Rafdal leading the way with 17 kills. She was joined by senior RSH Becca Reidy (16 kills, .382 ATK%), senior OH Jordan Kielty (season-high 15 kills, .216 ATK%) and senior MB Dakota Harkins (13 kills, .440 ATK%). Junior MB Brooke Frazer also was extremely efficient for the Rockets with six kills and a .455 hitting mark.
Senior S Adria Pryor tallied 60 assists for the Rockets to go along with three kills, a .750 ATK% and nine digs.
Freshman libero Ellen Hays sparked UT's defensive play in the back row with 26 digs and also collected a career-high seven assists. Harkins was the Rockets' top blocker with three rejections.
Junior OH Claire Gerwig paced WMU offensively with 18 kills and a .455 ATK%.
Both teams enjoyed productive offensive evenings as UT notched a .293 hitting mark and WMU posted a .319 attack percentage.
Toledo found itself down 2-1 for a second straight evening but responded with a strong performance in Set 4 and controlling Set 5.
UT took control of the fourth set midway through the stanza on back-to-back kills from Rafdal and Reidy followed by a Hays' service ace. Following a WMU timeout, Rafdal answered a Bronco kill with back-to-back blasts for a 20-15 advantage. Toledo then closed out the set on a Kielty kill.
The Rockets never trailed in the final set and two kills from Harkins sparked a four-point burst to put the Midnight Blue and Gold ahead 8-4. WMU then climbed within two points on three different occasions but UT put the Broncos away with a Reidy kill and Rafdal ace for a 13-8 advantage. Reidy closed out the match with a smash off the hands of a WMU blocker.
Toledo now hits the road next weekend for a pair of matches at No. 18 Ohio and Kent State. The Rockets will face the Bobcats on Friday, Oct. 18 before visiting the Golden Flashes on Saturday, Oct. 19. Both contests are set for 7:00 p.m. starts.
