TOLEDO, Ohio – Junior Izzy Granger tallied a team-high 15 kills to lead the Toledo women's volleyball team to a three-game sweep over Eastern Michigan in Mid-American Conference action on Friday night in Savage Arena.  The victory moved the Rockets (12-7, 5-2 MAC) into a four-way tie for second place in the MAC with the Eagles (11-10, 5-2), Bowling Green (10-8, 5-2) and Central Michigan (14-5, 5-2).

"Our team showed great poise in big moments tonight," Head Coach Jason Oliver said. "When Eastern pushed us with great defense, we were really able to rely on our offense. I am happy to get this crucial win in conference play and look forward to working hard in practice and getting better next week."

Fifth-year senior Taylor Alt, also tallied 12 kills for the Rockets, while freshman Grace Freiberger led the way defensively with 15 digs.

Sophomore Macy Hatkevich collected 40 assists in addition to notching 11 digs.

The Rockets out-hit the Eagles by a .228-.149 margin and registered 10 service aces.

HOW IT HAPPENED

SET ONE (25-17 TOLEDO)

• The Rockets took an 8-4 lead with Olivia Heitkamp's two kills sparking a 5-0 spurt.
• Eastern Michigan bounced back and took a 13-11 advantage with a 5-0 run of its own.
• Toledo regained control after back-to-back kills from Kayla Ozanich gave UT a 19-14 cushion.
• Taylor Alt's kill closed out the eight-point opening set victory during which the Rockets posted an impressive .406 hitting mark.

SET TWO (25-23 TOLEDO)

• Neither team led by more than three points until the Rockets took a 16-11 lead on a Caylee Sharkey kill.
• The Eagles quickly regrouped and took a 19-18 lead with a five-point run.
• EMU extended its margin to 22-20, but kills from Heitkamp and Izzy Granger evened the score and forced the Eagles to take timeout.
• Granger's eighth kill of the set gave the Rockets a 2-0 lead in the match.

SET THREE (25-23 TOLEDO)

• Toledo never trailed on its way to the two-point victory.
• The Rockets' biggest lead of the set was four points, but EMU rallied to tie the score at 22-22.
• A block from Macy Hatkevich and Ozanich put UT up 24-22, with the match ending on an Eagle attack error.
• Alt and Granger both tallied five kills in the final set.

UP NEXT
Toledo returns to action next week with a pair of road matches against Akron on Thursday, Oct. 17 and Buffalo on Friday, Oct. 18.