MARION, IND. - No.12 volleyball fell in a five set thriller against cross county rival No. 19 Taylor University. The teams battled close all day with four of the five sets needing more than 25 points to win, including the final three sets. IWU had a chance to win in set five with a 14-12 lead, but the Trojans were able to rally with a 5-1 run to give the Wildcats their first loss in the Crossroads League.

 

THE ESSENTIALS

• Location: Taylor University | Upland, Ind.
• Records: IWU - 13-3, 6-1 CRL |  Taylor Universiy - 17-4, 6-1 CRL
• NAIA Top-25 Ranking: IWU - #12 | TU - #19

MATCH VITALS

• The teams traded points for the entire first set, but IWU scored three of the final four points to take the set 26-24.
• Taylor gained momentum early in set two jumping out to a 12-5 lead. The Wildcats used a 12-3 run late to pull within one at 22-21, but the Trojans answered with three straight to take set two 25-21.
• The Wildcats and Trojans battled through set three with neither team gaining more than a two point lead. The Trojans scored two straight with the set tied at 31 apiece to grab set three and take a commanding 2-1 lead into the third set.
• The teams played another tightly contested set in set four. IWU used an 11-3 run to take the lead, and finished off the Trojans with a late 4-1 run to take the set 26-24.
• IWU got off to a fast start in the decisive fifth set, scoring the first four points and holding a 7-3 lead halfway through the set. With IWU holding a 14-12 lead and a chance to win the match, Taylor scored three straight points to grab a 15-14 lead on their way to taking the final set 17-15.
• Eva Joldersma (26 kills) and Martina Demarchi (19 kills) paced the Wildcat attack.
• Julia Price (7 blocks), Victoria Johnson (6 blocks) and Cassie Gregory (4 blocks) led the IWU defense.
• Abbigail Porter and Danyelle Prado led the team with 38 and 26 assists, respectively.
• Ally Barkhaus tallied 27 digs while Eva Joldersma recorded 21.
• Taylor committed 32 errors while IWU had 31.
• Wildcat servers recorded 11 aces on the match.

MOATS PERSPECTIVE

• "Proud of the hard fought battle on both sides of the net! this match taught us a lot and we will get better from it!"

LOOKING FOWARD

• The Wildcats take on No. 3 Marian University at home on Wednesday, September 28th at 7pm.
• Individuals looking to attend can purchase tickets at IWUWildcats.com/Tickets

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