KALAMAZOO, Mich. — The University of Toledo volleyball team won for the second night in a row, defeating Western Michigan in five sets.
"Tonight was a gutsy win for us," head coach Jason Oliver said. "It was a great way to cap off our weekend. I was really proud of our focus today. There were a few moments where we could have let them back into the match, but we stayed focused and found a way to win."
Toledo won Set 1 and Set 3, and WMU won Set 2 and Set 4. After the Broncos' fourth-set victory, the Rockets regained momentum to clinch a 2-0 conference weekend.
Junior Chloee Kleespies had 14 kills and three blocks, junior Emma Swope added 13 kills, and freshman Ryann Jaqua contributed 10 kills and 14 digs. Sophomore Maddie Fogg led the team with 28 assists, and Megan Beasley was close behind with 23.
Toledo will wrap up the 2019 season next weekend with home matches against Central Michigan and Eastern Michigan.
Set 1 (Toledo, 25-21)
Toledo started the match off by taking an 11-3 lead over the Broncos in the first set. The Rockets' lead grew to 17-8 after a 4-0 run that was capped by an ace from Jaqua. WMU closed the gap a bit to 19-16 after an 8-2 run and came as close as 22-20. But Toledo held on to win 25-21, with Kleespies tallying the 25th point. Jaqua, a Kalamazoo native, had four kills and two aces in the first set.
Set 2 (WMU, 25-17)
Western Michigan led for nearly the entire set, doubling up the Rockets early at 6-3 and moving forward from there. The Broncos led by as many as eight and ended up taking down UT by a final score of 25-17 to tie the match at 1-1.
Set 3 (Toledo, 25-20)
The Rockets scored early and in bunches in the third set. They started with a 5-1 lead and used a 6-1 run to jump ahead 12-4. The lead reached double-digits for the first time at 16-6 after a 10-3 run. With Toledo leading 23-15, Western Michigan scored five of the next six points to make it 24-20, but a kill from Swope ended the set to put Toledo ahead 2-1 in the match. Kleespies contributed five kills and two blocks to the Rockets' winning efforts.
Set 4 (WMU, 25-11)
Toledo scored the first point of the fourth set, but wouldn't hold the lead at any other point as WMU dominated play in the fourth frame. The Broncos scored five in a row after the Rockets' set-opening termination and cruised from there, going on to win 25-11. A 13-2 run for Western Michigan ended the fourth set and forced a decisive fifth frame. WMU hit .526 in the fourth set.
Set 5 (Toledo, 15-12)
The Rockets opened up an 8-3 run to start play in the final set of the match, but the Broncos pulled within one and made the score 11-10. Jaqua tallied back-to-back kills to put Toledo up by three, and UT would go on to win 15-12 to finish the weekend 2-0.
