OSHKOSH, Wis.- The fourth-ranked UW-Oshkosh women's volleyball team closed out its regular season Friday (Nov. 6) with a five-set loss to (RV) UW-Whitewater inside Kolf Sports Center. The Titans took the opening set, 25-17, before dropping the second, 20-25, and responding with a 27-25 victory in the third. The Warhawks claimed the final two sets, 26-24 and 16-14, to hand Oshkosh its first conference loss of the season and snap its 15-match winning streak against WIAC competition.
Oshkosh, which secured its fourth consecutive outright WIAC regular season championship last week, finished the regular season with a 24-4 overall record and a 6-1 mark in conference play. UW-Whitewater improved to 17-9 overall and 4-3 in the WIAC.
The Titans finished the evening with 62 kills on 187 attacks for a .176 hitting percentage, while the Warhawks recorded 68 kills on 196 swings for a .189 clip. Oshkosh held advantages in service aces, 10-3, and total blocks, 11-9, while UW-Whitewater finished with an 87-77 edge in digs. The match featured 31 ties and nine lead changes.
Grace Juergens (Lockport, Ill./Lockport Community) led the Titan attack with a team-high 16 kills on 48 swings while adding 17 digs for a double-double.
Lauren Grier (Fond du Lac/Fond du Lac) contributed 14 kills and three total blocks, including two solo blocks, while
Clare McEniry (North Aurora, Ill./Rosary) put down 11 kills on a .269 hitting percentage.
Riley Borrowman (Oswego, Ill./Oswego) turned in the most efficient offensive performance for Oshkosh, recording eight kills with just one error on 11 attacks for a .636 hitting percentage. Borrowman also added four total blocks, including two solo blocks, while
Samantha Perlberg (Chippewa Falls/Chippewa Falls) finished with eight kills, 13 digs, three service aces and three solo blocks.
Callie Panasuk (Oak Creek/Oak Creek) anchored the back row with a team-high 24 digs, 10 assists and two service aces.
Alex Hopp (Spring Grove, Ill./Richmond-Burton Community) directed the offense with a team-high 30 assists, 10 digs and two aces for a double-double, while
Ava Van Hammond (Kimberly/Kimberly) contributed 20 assists, seven digs and two aces.
The Titans came out firing in the opening set, recording 14 kills with just three attack errors on 30 swings for a match-best .367 hitting percentage. Juergens, Grier and McEniry helped lead the offensive effort, while Oshkosh's defense forced UW-Whitewater into six attack errors and held the Warhawks to a .152 hitting percentage. The Titans controlled the frame from start to finish, taking the opener, 25-17, without surrendering the lead.
UW-Whitewater responded in the second with its most efficient offensive set of the night, putting down 17 kills with just five errors on 41 attacks for a .293 hitting percentage. Oshkosh countered with 12 kills and a .184 clip, but the Warhawks' offensive production proved to be the difference. The teams battled through eight ties and three lead changes before UW-Whitewater secured a 25-20 victory to even the match at one set apiece.
The third set brought another closely contested battle as Oshkosh and UW-Whitewater combined for 29 kills. The Titans recorded 14 kills while hitting .128, while the Warhawks put down 15 kills on an identical .128 clip. Juergens and Grier helped pace the Titan attack, while Perlberg and Panasuk contributed to the defensive effort. Oshkosh prevailed in the extended frame, 27-25, to regain the advantage and move within one set of the victory.
UW-Whitewater answered in the fourth, which featured a match-high 12 ties and four lead changes. The Warhawks recorded 14 kills while hitting .182, while Oshkosh countered with 13 kills and a .114 hitting percentage. Grier and Borrowman continued to provide a strong presence at the net, but UW-Whitewater held on for a 26-24 victory to force a decisive fifth set.
Neither team could gain much separation in the final frame, which featured eight ties and two lead changes. Oshkosh recorded nine kills on 28 attacks while hitting .143, while UW-Whitewater countered with 11 kills on a .194 clip. The Titans battled through the extended set, but the Warhawks eventually secured a 16-14 victory to complete the five-set comeback.
Oshkosh will enter the WIAC Tournament (presented by Culver's) as the top seed and will host a semifinal matchup Thursday (Nov. 12) inside Kolf Sports Center at 7 p.m. The Titans will face the winner of the first-round matchup between fifth-seeded UW-Platteville and fourth-seeded UW-Whitewater.
