BOWLING GREEN, Ky. — The Western Kentucky University volleyball team wrapped up an undefeated weekend and the Xavier Invitational championship Saturday with wins over IPFW and Xavier at Cintas Center in Cincinnati.
WKU (5-2) started the day with a 3-0 (26-24, 25-16, 25-22) sweep of IPFW and finished with a 3-1 (25-18, 18-25, 25-12, 25-21) victory against the host Musketeers, extending the Lady Toppers’ win streak to five matches.
WKU junior Tiffany Elmore led the offensive attack against Xavier (2-4) with 10 kills, a .389 hitting percentage and six blocks, three of which were solo. Sophomore Jordyn Skinner finished with nine kills and added 14 digs in a strong defensive effort. Junior Lindsay Williams recorded eight kills, and senior Emily Teegarden had six. Williams also added six blocks on the night.
“Xavier’s a quality opponent, and we knew it would be a challenge,” WKU coach Travis Hudson said. “And again, offensively especially, we really struggled. But our kids played with a lot of guts, and we found a way to get the win.”
Sophomore libero Sarah Rogers recorded a season-high 21 digs. Senior Ashley Potts had 11 digs, and freshman Ashley Potts added 10.
Freshman setter Melanie Stutsman contributed 34 assists, six kills, 10 digs and four blocks.
WKU never trailed in the first set and kept Xavier at arm’s length for most of the game. In the second set, Xavier built an early 8-3 lead and consistently added to it with a series of small runs. Xavier had a .433 hitting percentage and 15 kills on the way to its only win of the match.
In the third set, Xavier jumped out to an early 6-2 lead before WKU gained control with a 6-0 run. The Lady Toppers went on to score 11 of 13 points during the middle of the match to take a 19-9 lead and put away the match by recording six of the final nine points.
The two teams battled back and forth early in the fourth set, tying the score 11 times. WKU broke the final tie, at 13-13, by scoring three of the next four points and never trailed again.
Against IPFW, Elmore led the Lady Toppers with a season-high 14 kills and a .600 hitting percentage. Skinner had 10 kills and seven digs. Williams and redshirt freshman Paige Wessel each recorded nine kills. Williams added four blocks, while Wessel finished the match with a .412 hitting percentage.
“Especially early on, I didn’t think we played great offensively, but we did little things better,” Hudson said. “I’ve been trying to convince this team that little things matter, and we did little things better. We defended much, much better today, and that was actually what carried us home.”
Defensively, Ashley Potts recorded a season-high 13 digs. Rogers finished with nine.
Stutsman posted 42 assists, five kills, eight digs and a team-best .625 hitting percentage. WKU finished with a .319 hitting percentage while limiting IPFW to a .172 percentage.
WKU won the first set by snapping a 24-24 tie with back-to-back kills by Skinner and Elmore. The two teams were tied nine times in the set, with neither leading by more than three points the entire way.
After IPFW opened the second set with a 3-0 advantage, the two teams traded points. With the game tied at 10-10, WKU scored seven of the next eight points to build a 17-11 lead. Then at 20-15, the Lady Toppers ran off four straight points. IPFW fought off one match point before a kill from Williams closed out the set.
The third set was another close fight, with 12 ties through the set. At 17-17, WKU scored three straight to go up 20-17. IPFW rallied back to close the gap to 23-22 before back-to-back kills from Williams and Wessel closed out the match.
Elmore was named the tournament’s most valuable player, with Skinner and Stutsman joining her on the all-tournament team.
“Tiff made plays in a lot of ways,” Hudson said. “She was really, really good offensively, but she was a dominant force blocking as well. She’s ready to have that kind of year for us, I think.”
The Lady Toppers return to action next weekend when they host the WKU Tournament at E.A. Diddle Arena. The two-day event features teams from Virginia Tech, Missouri, Tennessee Tech and Central Arkansas.
