AKRON, Ohio – The University of Toledo women's volleyball team (14-4, 5-1 MAC) extended its winning streak to five, taking down Akron (8-10, 2-4 MAC) in three sets.
"What a great team effort," head coach
Jason Oliver said. "We haven't had much success at Akron recently and to come in against a well-coached team and execute at a higher level was amazing. I thought every aspect of how we played really was clicking and we needed it too. I am proud of our effort during this long road trip."
The Rockets' torrid pace continued on Saturday, and they are now winners of their last 15 sets, the longest unbeaten stretch since 2005 when the team won 18 consecutive sets.
Sophomore
Taylor Alt was terrific on Saturday, collecting 13 kills and hitting .429 to lead the way. Juniors
Rhyenne Filisi and
Sina Uluave both had eight kills, while sophomores
Abby Erickson and
Rachel Pierce added five terminations apiece to help the cause. Junior
Ryann Jaqua led all players with 21 digs, and freshman
Elaine Redman had 34 assists.
The Rockets return home next weekend for two big matches against first-place Western Michigan (13-4, 6-0 MAC).
1st Set (25-15, Toledo)
Toledo fell behind early, with the Zips jumping out to a 5-2 lead. The Rockets wouldn't stay down for long, as they would score the next 10 points to stun Akron and take a 12-5 advantage. From that point on, it was all Midnight Blue and Gold, as they would go on to win 25-15 and take a 1-0 lead in the match. Toledo held the Zips to a negative attack percentage (-.056) in the first set.
2nd Set (25-18, Toledo)
Both teams alternated scoring to begin the set until Akron scored two in a row to make it 7-5. Toledo scored four of the next five to make the score 9-8, and would not trail for the remainder of the second set. Sophomore
Claire Eiden's back-to-back aces highlighted a 7-1 run for the Rockets on their way to winning 25-18 and taking a 2-0 lead in the match. UT hit .378 in the second set, its highest of the match.
3rd Set (25-18, Toledo)
Toledo took a 4-1 lead to begin the third set, but the Zips chipped away at their deficit and were able to tie the score at 13-13. Erickson tallied two straight kills to put the Rockets ahead 15-13, and provided a spark that allowed her team to stay in the lead for the remainder of the match. Pierce's kill clinched the set and the match and capped a 2-0 weekend for Toledo.
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