Thursday, September 10
Morgantown, W. Va.
2 p.m.
University of Toledo
5-1,0-0MAC
3
vs
1
Lehigh
7-1,0-0Patriot
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Final F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lehigh | 17 | 25 | 22 | 22 | 1 |
| Toledo | 25 | 17 | 25 | 25 | 3 |
Players Mentioned
S
/ Women's Volleyball
OPP
/ Women's Volleyball
OH
/ Women's Volleyball
L
/ Women's Volleyball
S
/ Women's Volleyball
MB
/ Women's Volleyball
MB
/ Women's Volleyball
MB
/ Women's Volleyball
OH
/ Women's VolleyballTeam Stats
Lehigh
UT
Kills
52
59
Errors
20
24
Attempts
154
173
Hitting %
.208
.202
Points
65.0
75.0
Assists
46
58
Aces
5
7
Blocks
8
9
Game Leaders
Kills
14
Aces
0
Blocks
2
Kills
13
Aces
0
Blocks
6
Kills
11
Aces
0
Blocks
0
Kills
8
Aces
0
Blocks
1
Lilly Merk had a team-high four service aces against Lehigh on Thursday.
Photo by: Ellen Holton
Toledo Battles to 3-1 Win Over Lehigh
9/10/2026 4:40:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
Three Rockets tally double-figure kills in first win of the West Virginia Invitational
MORGANTOWN, W. Va. – The Toledo women's volleyball team handed Lehigh its first loss of the season with a 3-1 victory (25-17, 18-25, 25-22, 25-22) on the first day of the West Virginia Invitational in Morgantown, W. Va. on Thursday afternoon.
The Rockets (5-1) had three players with double-figure kills, led by Ava Siefke with 14 terminations and Kayla Ozanich with a season-high 13 kills and six total blocks. Jessica Costlow fired off 11 kills to go along with a career-best 22 digs to record her second double-double of the season.
Maddy Bach led UT with a season-high 25 assists to go along with 11 digs for her second double-double of the year. Junior Janelle Green also tallied 20 assists, setting a new career best.
Toledo fired off seven service aces throughout the contest, all from Lilly Merk and Grace Freiberger. Merk had four aces while Freiberger tallied three.
Quoting Head Coach Brian Wright
"Proud of the group for this great win. First match on the road. Neutral site mid afternoon match. Playing a team that's 6-0. All reasons we knew this would be a battle and I liked our resilience across the entire match. Meg (Jarrett) came in the fourth set and brought us a really good spark off the bench. We made the adjustments we needed to make and most importantly, we stayed locked in for a long period of time. Proud of the team's performance!"
Key Moments
Toledo wraps up the West Virginia Invitational with matchups against VCU and West Virginia on Friday, Sept. 11. The Rockets will take on the Rams at 1:30 p.m. and conclude the tournament against the Mountaineers at 7 p.m. Both matches will be streamed on ESPN+.
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The Rockets (5-1) had three players with double-figure kills, led by Ava Siefke with 14 terminations and Kayla Ozanich with a season-high 13 kills and six total blocks. Jessica Costlow fired off 11 kills to go along with a career-best 22 digs to record her second double-double of the season.
Maddy Bach led UT with a season-high 25 assists to go along with 11 digs for her second double-double of the year. Junior Janelle Green also tallied 20 assists, setting a new career best.
Toledo fired off seven service aces throughout the contest, all from Lilly Merk and Grace Freiberger. Merk had four aces while Freiberger tallied three.
Quoting Head Coach Brian Wright
"Proud of the group for this great win. First match on the road. Neutral site mid afternoon match. Playing a team that's 6-0. All reasons we knew this would be a battle and I liked our resilience across the entire match. Meg (Jarrett) came in the fourth set and brought us a really good spark off the bench. We made the adjustments we needed to make and most importantly, we stayed locked in for a long period of time. Proud of the team's performance!"
Key Moments
- Toledo and Lehigh went back-and-forth to begin the first set. UT strung together a 7-1 run, highlighted by two aces from Grace Freiberger and two kills from Kayla Ozanich, to take the lead, 14-10. Ava Siefke later fired off a kill to push Toledo's lead to six, 20-14. Jessica Costlow put the Rockets at set point, 24-17, before a Lehigh service error secured the set win.
- The Mountain Hawks jumped out to an early 7-0 edge in the second set. Toledo picked up three-straight points off a kill from Siefke and a block from Sierra Pertzborn and Ozanich, 7-3. Lehigh responded with a 5-1 run of their own to extend the lead, 12-4. A block from Sophie Catalano and Lilly Merk put Toledo within four, 14-10, before Lehigh extended its lead with two-straight kills, 20-14. The Mountain Hawks took the set win with a UT service error.
- Toledo and Lehigh traded runs in the third set, but three kills from Siefke, a block from Pertzborn and an ace from Freiberger put UT ahead, 10-5. Kills from Ozanich and Catalano pushed Toledo in front by seven, 15-8, and an ace from Merk kept Toledo ahead, 21-15. Lehigh got within three with two kills and a block, 21-18, before Catalano fired off a kill to put the Rockets at set point. An error from the Mountain Hawks gave UT the set win.
- Both sides traded points to open the fourth set before Lehigh used a 4-0 run to get out in front, 7-4. A solo block from Ozanich put UT back within three, 12-9, and Siefke's 12th kill of the day brought UT within one, 16-15. An ace from Merk evened the set, 18-18, and both sides continued to trade blows. Catalano put the Rockets at match point with a kill, 24-21, and Siefke hammered home the winning point.
Toledo wraps up the West Virginia Invitational with matchups against VCU and West Virginia on Friday, Sept. 11. The Rockets will take on the Rams at 1:30 p.m. and conclude the tournament against the Mountaineers at 7 p.m. Both matches will be streamed on ESPN+.
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