Titans Earn Two Weeknight Wins in Plymouth

PLYMOUTH, Wis.- With two wins on Wednesday night (Sept. 6), the UW-Oshkosh women's volleyball team started out 6-0 for the first time since the 2015 season.

The 2015 squad won their first 15 matches of the season, eventually playing in the first round of the NCAA postseason tournament.

UW-Oshkosh beat St. Norbert in four sets, by scores of 25-17, 21-25, 25-14 and 25-22

The Titans jumped out to an early 3-0 lead before the Green Knights tied it back up at 6. A 10-4 spurt with three runs of three points forced an SNC timeout after a UWO kill made the score 16-10.

The timeout didn't slow down the Titans, who scored four-straight after to force another SNC timeout. With the score 24-14, the Green Knights scored three in a row, lowering the gap to seven points, but a ball hit out of bounds ended the set there.

In set two, SNC took the lead at 2-1 and only gave it up once. The Titans took a momentary lead at 4-3, but it was immediately tied back up. The set was tied multiple times after; at 5, 7, 8, 9 and 11. Each time however, SNC pulled back away. After a 4-0 spurt to break the 11-11 tie called for an Oshkosh timeout, the Green Knights increased their lead to six before another Oshkosh timeout was called. Riley Kindt pulled the Titans back within four points with a kill to make the score 21-17, but the lead was too much for the team, eventually dropping their second set of the season.

After a slow start to the second set, the Titans went on two 3-0 runs and grabbed a 6-3 lead early on in the third. SNC still had juice left though and took an 11-9 lead with five-straight points. The first timeout of the set was called by the Green Knights after UWO responded with six-straight of their own. Four and 5-point runs, separated by a Green Knights timeout, gave the Titans a 2-1 edge headed into set four.

The Titans fought back to a tie at 12 points after falling behind on the first point. UWO took a 17-15 lead which made SNC call a timeout. The teams traded six points before St. Norbert scored three in a row for a late 21-20 lead. After an Oshkosh timeout, the Titans outscored the Green Knights 5-1, including the final three points of the set.

In their second match of the night, the Titans downed Lakeland in three sets, sinking the Muskies by scores of 25-16, 25-23 and 25-12.

UWO hit .284, while holding LU to a hitting percentage of .000, the lowest opponent hitting percentage in 37 matches. The Titans held Marian University to a -.022 hitting percentage at Kolf Sports Center on Sept. 9, 2022.

The first set was close until Kindt gave UWO a 4-3 lead Oshkosh kept the rest of the way. Sami Perlberg started a five-point run with a kill. During the run, Izzy Coon recorded an ace and Kindt and Olivia Breunig combined for a block.

UWO led by as much as eight in the set. Riley Dahlquist scored two of the final three points with a kill and a set-winning ace.

An early run of four points gave the Titans a 5-1 lead in the second set that they held onto until the Muskies took the lead at 18-17. The set tied back up at 19, 20, 21, 22 and 23 points before Kindt got the serve back for UWO with a kill and blocked the following attack for the win.

Three-straight points for the Titans started the third set. Steadily building their lead the Titans only allowed the Muskies to score twice in a row three times. Perlberg kicked off another spurt with a kill to make the score 15-9 and Kindt followed her lead with four consecutive kills not even a Lakeland timeout could stop, giving UWO a 20-9 lead. After UWO lost the serve, Robyn Kirsch sealed the sweep with a kill from Izzy Coon.

The Titans return on Friday (Sept. 8) to host Carthage College, Millikin University (Ill.), Milwaukee School of Engineering and Ohio Northern University for the two-day Marty Petersen Invitational.