EAU CLAIRE, Wis. (Blugolds.com) – After falling to UW-La Crosse on Wednesday, the UW-Eau Claire volleyball team bounced back to defeat UW-Platteville 3-0 in Zorn Arena tonight.
Holding the Sixth Annual Breast Cancer Awareness and Fundraising Event, the Blugolds hosted the Pioneers in Zorn Arena, the first volleyball match in Zorn since the early 1990's.
In the opening set, the two teams played close and it ended in favor of Eau Claire, 29-27. The Pioneers led a majority of the set but after getting up 19-13, the Blugolds used a 5-0 run to get back into the set. The teams tied it up at 23 and Eau Claire eventually won by scoring three straight at the end after Platteville led by one.
The other two sets went the Blugolds' way, and they came out on top 25-17 in both.
In the second set, after a 15-15 tie, the Blugolds outscored the Pioneers 10-2 the rest of the way for the win. In the final set, the teams were tied at seven but the Blugolds used a 7-0 run to get up 14-7 and never looked back.
The Blugolds finished with 51 kills and a hitting percentage of .210 while Platteville hit .055 with 26 kills. Kelly Schuh (Sr.-Appleton, Wis./Hortonville) led the match with 12 kills.
Three Blugolds reached double figures in digs with Lauren Sutherland (Sr.-Dayton, Minn./Meadow Creek Christian) leading the way with a match-high 20 while Jenna Smits (So.-Green Bay, Wis./Preble) recorded 20 set assists to lead the match.
Eau Claire is now 11-9 on the season and 3-1 in the conference while Platteville drops to 8-12 overall and 0-3 in the WIAC.
Tomorrow the Blugolds will be at the Saint Mary's Invitational in Winona, Minn. They will play two matches, the first against Augsburg College (Minn.) at 1 p.m.
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