Titans Finish WIAC Schedule Unbeaten

The UW-Oshkosh women's volleyball team capped off its first undefeated WIAC slate since 1990 with a 25-18, 25-19, 25-19 victory over UW-Platteville on Wednesday (Oct. 21) in Kolf Sports Center.

UW-Oshkosh (28-0/8-0 WIAC) took a 6-1 lead in set one before UW-Platteville responded by scoring eight of the next nine points to take a 9-7 advantage. The Titans regrouped by scoring five straight points to take a three-point lead at 12-9.

UW-Oshkosh held a slim 14-13 lead before going on a 9-3 run to put set one out of reach. The Titans produced 16 kills in the first set, including five by Aleisha Bagin (Fr. • West Bend) and three by Katie Beining (Sr. • Brookfield), Megan Fischer (Sr. • Manitowoc) and Larissa Krumplitsch (Fr. • Appleton).

After UW-Oshkosh clawed out to a 10-5 cushion in set two, UW-Platteville could not get any closer than 19-15 as the Titans took a 2-0 lead in sets. Beining provided four kills in the set.

UW-Platteville (17-8/5-3 WIAC), winners of 14 of 16 contests entering the match, took a 10-4 lead in set three before UW-Oshkosh went to business. The Titans scored seven of the next eight points to knot the score at 11-11. Tied at 14-14, UW-Oshkosh claimed five of the next six points to pull ahead 19-15, before holding match point at 24-16. The Pioneers tallied three straight points to inch to within 24-19, before a missed serve gave the Titans the match.

UW-Oshkosh, which won its 30th straight home contest, was led by Beining who had 13 kills, six digs and four service aces. Bagin and Jacque Ray (Sr. • Richland Center) each had eight kills and Fischer ended with five. Vara dished out 33 assists and added four blocks and Christina Cahoon (Jr. • Watertown) had a match-high 14 digs.

Melissa Hillebrand led UW-Platteville with nine kills. Leslie White tallied 10 digs, Ali Sikic 29 assists and Briana Kaiser four blocks. Lisa Bell added eight kills and Brooke Nichols nine digs.

UW-Oshkosh, the number one ranked team in the NCAA Division III according to the American Volleyball Coaches Association, held advantages of 41-34 in kills, 40-33 in assists, 42-37 in digs and 8-0 in service aces. Both teams had six blocks in the contest.

UW-Oshkosh will host the semifinals and final of the WIAC Tournament on Friday and Saturday (Nov. 6-7) in Kolf Sports Center. First round match-ups include fifth-seed UW-River Falls at fourth-seed UW-Eau Claire and sixth-seed UW-Stevens Point at third-seed UW-Platteville on Tuesday (Nov. 3) at 7 p.m. The UW-Stevens Point and UW-Platteville winner will battle second-seed UW-Whitewater at 5 p.m., while the UW-River Falls and UW-Eau Claire winner will play top-seed UW-Oshkosh at 7:30 p.m. Both matches will be held on Friday.

Semifinals winners with play for a berth into the NCAA Division III championship at 2:30 p.m., while the third-place match is slated for noon on Saturday.