DAYTON, Ohio— The University of Toledo women's volleyball team won its fifth straight match on Friday, taking down Western Illinois in three sets.
The Rockets started off their weekend at Wright State's tournament in style, sweeping the Leathernecks and hitting .394 as a team. Junior
Chloee Kleespies was terrific, tallying a match-high 13 kills and hitting .429. Freshman
Olivia Vance (seven kills, .636 hitting percentage) and sophomore
Elise Wilcox (nine kills, .562 hitting percentage) both had efficient and productive outings for Toledo as well.
The Rockets' five-match winning streak is their longest since the 2013 season, when they won eight in a row.
Toledo will face Indiana State on Saturday morning and Wright State in the evening to close out its weekend.
Set 1 (Toledo, 25-20)
Western Illinois led early in the first set, 8-4, but the Rockets were able to fight back and tie the score at 10-10. Toledo used a 6-1 run to take a five point lead, 16-11, and didn't look back. A kill from Birnbrich ended the first set and handed Toledo a 1-0 lead in the match. Kleespies was excellent in the first frame, tallying six kills on eight attacks.
Set 2 (Toledo, 25-19)
Toledo and WIU were neck-and-neck to start the second set, playing to a 9-9 tie. The Rockets turned it on offensively, though, and scored six of the next eight points to move ahead of the Leathernecks, 16-12. Toledo was able to cruise to a 25-19 win in the second set and go up 2-0 on Western Illinois. The Rockets hit .441, their highest single-set hitting percentage of the afternoon. Kleespies added five kills and seven digs, while Vance was a perfect 3-for-3 attacking in the second set.
Set 3 (Toledo, 25-18)
Once again, WIU hung around with Toledo to begin the frame. The Leathernecks led as late as 8-7, but that would be their last lead of the match. A 7-2 run for the Midnight Blue and Gold put the score at 14-10, and their lead only grew from their. Wilcox had five kills to lead the way as the Rockets hit .394 en route to a sweep of the Leathernecks.
