OSHKOSH, Wis.- The UW-Oshkosh women's volleyball team defeated North Central College (Ill.) and Aurora University (Ill.) on Saturday (Sept. 7) in the second day of the Marty Petersen Invitational.
 
The Titans, ranked eighth in the nation by the American Volleyball Coaches Association, opened the day by posting 25-22, 25-17 and 25-17 set scores against the Cardinals and wrapped up the home invitational with 25-27, 25-18, 25-13 and 25-16 set scores against the Spartans.
 
Hannah Moe (Jr. • Oconto) and Sami Perlberg (So. • Chippewa Falls) both hit seven kills against North Central, hitting .357 and .222. Kalli Mau (Fifth • Kimberly) recorded 15 assists and Lauren Grier (So. • Fond du Lac) blocked three attacks.
 
The Cardinals led early in the first set by scoring seven of the first eight points. Small runs of three and four points brought Oshkosh back within a couple points and after a 4-0 North Central spurt, the Titans took off for six straight points to claim the lead at 23-21. Olivia Breunig (Sr. • Sauk Prairie) started the run with a kill and added another during while Carly Stamm (So. • Winneconne) recorded two aces. The Cardinals scored to end the run with a kill, however two attack errors awarded Oshkosh the set.
 
Oshkosh and North Central battled for the edge for much of the second set and both teams led by four points at various times. After an Oshkosh attack error, the Titans went 3-0 to make the score 20-15 and they never looked back. Four of their final five points were offensive, including two Moe kills, a Mau ace and a Robyn Kirsch (Sr. • Wausau) kill.
 
Moe registered a kill for the first point of the third set and the leader never switched the rest of the way. North Central kept the score close by ending Titan scoring streaks before they went on for too long, but three spurts of three consecutive points for Oshkosh grew the lead enough that it led 24-16 late. Much like the first set, North Central ended an Oshkosh run with a kill and this time Perlberg hit the final kill.
 
Against the Spartans, Perlberg hit .378 with 15 kills and was joined in double-digits by Riley Kindt (Fifth • Brookfield), who recorded 10. Mau and Izzy Coon (Jr. • Fond du Lac) each reached 20-plus assists at 22 and 20. Grier added another six blocks and both Perlberg and Malia Winchel (So. • Oak Creek) served up two aces.
 
Aurora took the early lead over Oshkosh, scoring five quick points to make the score 7-3. The Titans came back to just a 1-point deficit by registering two 3-0 spurts. After trading runs of three more points, Moe tied the match up at 22-22 on consecutive kills and Oshkosh took the lead on an attack error, however the Spartans outscored the Titans 5-2 down the stretch to take the set.
 
It took 20 points for a team to lead by more than a point in the second set. Oshkosh finally pulled ahead at 11-9 and even though it never scored more than twice in a row after a 3-0 run, its lead slowly grew and eventually won 25-18.
 
The Spartans' early edge was quickly erased in the third set when Moe started a 7-point Titan run with a kill. Kindt added three and Perlberg logged two kills in the almost entirely offensive run. The next significant jump in the Titans' edge occurred during a 4-0 streak that made the score 23-12, which Joslyn Wolff (Sr. • Reeseville) and Winchel used to win the set by recorded a kill and an ace.
 
Oshkosh vaulted ahead early in front of the home crowd in the final set at Kolf Sports Center until Sept. 18 with a pair of kills from Kindt and one from Breunig, but the Spartans wouldn't give up and tied it at 8-8. Much like the earlier sets, a slow increase in the deficit fueled by small runs of three and four points brought the Titans a point away from winning the match and just like earlier matches, the Spartans snuck in one more kill before a Titan (this time it was Grier) ended a match with a kill of her own.
 
Fregien and Perlberg were named to the all-tournament team after the final match was completed.
 
The Titans are off all week, returning to action at the Hope College (Mich.) September Tournament. They face Otterbein University (Ohio) on Friday (Sept. 13) at 4 p.m. Eastern Time and No. 1 Juniata College (Pa.) and No. 2 Hope on Saturday (Sept. 14) at 11:30 a.m. and 2 p.m. Eastern Time respectively.