MARION, Ind. -- Less than 24 hours after a four set victory over previously unbeaten Mount Vernon Nazarene the No. 24-ranked Indiana Wesleyan University volleyball team defeated Taylor (Ind.) 3-1 in the IWU-Taylor Rivalry Match presented by Marion General Hospital.

Indiana Wesleyan (21-5, 12-1 CL) beat Mount Vernon Nazarene 3-1 on Friday night to give MVNU their first loss of the season and force a tie between the two programs atop of the Crossroads League standings with one loss apiece. Indiana Wesleyan had a quick turnaround to battle their Grant County rivalry but was up for the challenge.

“This was an outstanding performance. An outstanding performance,” said Indiana Wesleyan head coach Candace Moats. “We spent our whole week preparing for Mount Vernon Nazarene and little preparation for Taylor. Not because they are not good, we know they are very good, but we felt we had a little bit of an idea of what we could do there. And Taylor came with energy and they knew we just had a big win yesterday.”

Taylor (12-12, 8-6 CL) came out quick Saturday afternoon and captured the first set by a 25-17 score for the early 1-0 lead. But Indiana Wesleyan turned things around and played outstanding over the next three sets and won them by scores of 25-16, 25-17. 25-21 for the 3-1 victory.

“I just couldn’t be more proud,” continued Moats. “I couldn’t be more proud of the fight. It was outstanding.”

Remy Bucknor (JR/Euless, Texas) had a massive effort with a match-best 12 kills and a .524 hitting percentage. Bianca Cifaldi (JR/Itasca, Ill.) finished with 10 kills and Kristin Predajna (SR/Fishers, Ind.) added nine. Kylie Portera (JR/Lake in the Hills, Ill.) hit eight kills and amassed a .583 hitting percentage.

Katey Holler (SR/Marion, Ohio) led the Wildcats with 23 assists and Emily Workman (SO/Tinley Park, Ill.) added 22 more. The Wildcats served five aces in the victory and were led by Kelly Cypher (SR/Libertyville, Ill.) with three.

Indiana Wesleyan totaled nine blocks on defense. Bucknor had six block assists and Portera had a solo block and one block assist. Ashlen Buck (JR/Brazil, Ind.) earned a match-high 16 digs.

Indiana Wesleyan next plays Grace (Ind.) at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, October 21. The Crossroads League match will be played in Winona Lake, Indiana.