TOLEDO, Ohio – The Toledo women's volleyball fell to Miami 3-2 (25-27, 25-19, 23-25, 25-22, 11-15) on Friday night at Savage Arena. The match was tightly contested, seeing 32 ties and 12 lead changes.

The Rockets move to 16-6 (7-3 MAC) overall on the season.

Sophomore outside hitter Olivia Heitkamp led the Toledo offense, totaling 18 kills for her sixth consecutive match with double figure kills. Senior outside Sophie Catalano added 13 terminations while redshirt sophomore middle blocker Kayla Ozanich tallied 12 kills on a team-best .458 clip. Redshirt sophomore middle blocker Sierra Pertzborn recorded 11 kills to go along with six blocks and a team-best three service aces.

Senior setter Kelsey Smith recorded 53 assists, marking her second-straight match with 50 or more assists and fifth-consecutive match with 40-plus assists. Smith also poured in seven digs and four blocks. Sophomore libero Grace Freiberger had a team-high 28 digs for her eighth match of the season with 20 or more digs.

Toledo recorded 11 total blocks against the RedHawks which marks their ninth match this season with 10 or more blocks.

Quoting Head Coach Brian Wright
"We were in yet another battle tonight and this time couldn't pull off the win. We're a team that always battles so we'll take care of our bodies, get some sleep and be ready to get after it tomorrow. The fans were amazing tonight and we look forward to competing in front of another great crowd tomorrow."

Key Moments

• Toledo started off the first set winning the first five points and taking a 10-3 lead. Mami fired off three-straight point to cut the Rockets' lead to one, 14-13, before a kill from Sierra Pertzborn kept UT ahead, 17-14. The RedHawks tied the match with two kills and a block, 17-17, but Jessica Costlow and Kayla Ozanich tallied back-to-back terminations to regain the lead, 19-17. Costlow's second kill kept the Rockets in front, 21-19, before Miami evened the match with an ace, 21-21. After back-and-forth and trading set points, the RedHawks used a kill to take the set win.
• The Rockets and RedHawks began the second set trading points. UT took a 9-6 lead behind two blocks, including a solo block by Ozanich, and a kill from Olivia Heitkamp. Two straight kills from Sophia Catalano extended the Rockets' lead, 13-8, and a second block from Ozanich kept UT in front, 17-13. Two quick kills from Miami put the RedHawks within four, 23-19, before two kills from Catalano secured the set victory.
• Both teams went back-and-forth to begin the third set before Miami took the lead using an ace, 10-5. The Rockets used a 3-0 run to get within two, 10-8, before the RedHawks pushed the lead back to four, 12-8. Kills from Ozanich, Heitkamp and Kelsey Smith put UT within one, 13-12, but the Rockets took a one-point lead off of a Heitkamp kill, 16-15. A 4-0 run by the RedHawks put Miami back in front, 19-16, as Catalano recorded two kills to get within one, 20-19. Ozanich and Heitkamp tied the set with kills, 23-23, but Miami took the set win with a kill and UT error.
• The RedHawks took a slight 5-3 lead in the fourth set. A 5-0 run by the Rockets, highlighted by two service aces from Pertzborn, put UT in front, 9-6. An ace from Grace Freiberger and a Miami error extended Toledo's lead, 14-9. The RedHawks used a block to get within two, 17-15, and tied the match with a kill, 19-19. Miami took a 21-20 lead on a block, but the Rockets ended the set on a 3-0 run to force a fifth set.
• Two quick kills from Ozanich in the fifth set gave UT the slight edge, 4-3. A 4-1 run by the Rockets, highlighted by an ace from Avery Adamski, kept Toledo in front, 8-5. Miami responded with five straight points to take an 11-9 lead. The Rockets tied the match with two kills, 11-11, before Miami fired off four consecutive points to take the match victory.

Up Next
The Rockets wrap up the season series with the RedHawks on Saturday, Oct. 25. First serve is set for 4:00 p.m. with coverage on ESPN+.

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