TOLEDO, Ohio— The University of Toledo volleyball team fell to Central Michigan in five sets on Friday night at Savage Arena.

Toledo took a 2-1 lead into the fourth set, but CMU won the final two frames of the night to claim the victory. It was the second time this season the Rockets and Chippewas went the distance; the two teams played five sets in Mount Pleasant on Oct. 12.  

Senior Zoe Birnbrich hit .476, tallied 11 kills and four blocks on Friday night. Junior Emma Swope matched Birnbrich's kill total at 11, while junior Rhyen Neal added a match-high 28 digs. Sophomore Maddie Fogg led the team with 22 assists and had 17 digs. Redshirt freshman Liz Beasley hit .500 with nine kills and three blocks for the Rockets.

Toledo will play its final match of the 2019 season on Saturday night at 7:00 p.m. when it hosts Eastern Michigan.

Set 1 (Toledo, 25-23)
The Rockets took a 4-1 lead to start the night, but CMU answered back with seven straight points to make the score 8-4.The Chippewas were able to stay out in front for much of the set and took a four-point lead as late as 20-16. Unfazed, Toledo rattled off nine of the next 12 points to win 25-23 and take a 1-0 lead in the match. Trailing 23-21, junior Chloee Kleespies had a huge block and a clutch kill to tie the score at 23-23, then two CMU attack errors pushed Toledo to a 25th point.

Set 2 (CMU, 25-22)
The Chippewas won the second set to tie the match at 1-1. They scored points in bunches and took a 16-10 lead over the Rockets at one point. The CMU advantage grew to 23-15, its highest of the night, but the Rockets scored six of the next seven points to apply some pressure and make the score 24-22. The Chippewas were able to get one final kill, though, to put the score at 25-22.

Set 3 (Toledo, 25-16)
The most lopsided set of the night, Toledo dominated from the get-go. A 6-1 UT lead grew to 14-4 quickly, the 10-point lead was the largest for either team on the night. The Rockets led 20-10 at one point and, despite a late rally by Central Michigan, ended up on top 25-16 to take a 2-1 lead in the match. Toledo hit .367 in the third set, the highest for either team in a set on Friday night. Birnbrich added four kills and a couple blocks, while freshman Ryann Jaqua registered three aces in the third set.

Set 4 (CMU, 25-22)
Toledo once again took an early lead, scoring six of the first eight points of the fourth set. It was no matter for the Chippewas though, who used a 12-3 spurt to take a 14-9 lead, which they would not relinquish. The Rockets came close, pulling within one point as late as 21-20 after a huge block from Kleespies and freshman Olivia Vance. But CMU held on to force a fifth set.

Set 5 (CMU, 15-10)
The fifth and final set was close from the onset, but with the score tied at 6-6 CMU went on an 8-2 run to take a commanding 14-8 lead. Toledo managed to score twice to pull within four, 14-10, but the Chippewas' Grace Butler ended the match with a kill to send CMU home victorious.


Some action from Toledo's match against Central Michigan.