The University of Akron Athletics
University of Akron
Toledo
Volleyball puts away Toledo in five sets
October 11 | Women's Volleyball
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AKRON, Ohio -- Four Zips hit for double figures to help the University of Akron volleyball team come out on the right side of a back-and-forth battle in a 3-2 victory over the University of Toledo Saturday night (25-20, 12-25, 25-24, 22-25, 16-14).
Anna Wenger posted a team-high 12 kills for Akron (8-13, 2-4 MAC), and Julia Smagacz finished with 11. Mary Delich and Jessica Kloehn added 10 kills apiece. Delich and Kloehn came up big for the Zips defensively as well – Delich tallied six block-assists and one solo block, and Kloehn put up four solos and three assists.
Karley Kusan cashed in a double-double with 46 assists and 14 digs, also chipping in four kills and three block-assists.
Toledo (1-17, 0-6 MAC) was led by a match-high 21 kills from Alyssa Ehrhardt and another 14 from Rachel Vidourek.
Akron out-hit UT .214 to .205 for the match, and collected 17.0 total team blocks to the Rockets' 10.0.
The first set laid the groundwork for the rest of the night as the two teams fought through nine tie scores and four different lead changes. UA was unable to truly break away until a Smagacz kill shattered a 19-all tie and spurred a 6-1 run for the Zips saw them through to the end of the set.
With Akron holding a 1-0 lead, the tables were turned in the second set. Toledo jumped out to an 8-3 lead out of the gate and forced an Akron timeout. The Zips made it a two-point game on a kill from Kloehn, but they would not bridge the gap any further. The Rockets went on a 12-2 run and scored seven straight, digging Akron a hole that was too deep to recover from.
The third set was closely contested until Akron slowly created some distance from Toledo when a service ace from libero Brenna Mack gave UA a six-point lead at 18-12. UT recovered to tie things up at 24-all, but a solo block from Kloehn and another ace for Brenna Mack gave Akron the edge and the overall 2-1 advantage.
Despite an 8-4 lead, Akron played catch-up for much of the fourth set. Delich and Amanda Bedell teamed up for a block, cutting the deficit to one with the score at 21-20 in UT's favor, but the Rockets connected on four of the next six plays to extend the match to a fifth set.
The score tied 10 times in the final set before UA broke free for the last three-straight points. An Akron error gave Toledo the first look at match point for either team at 14-13, but the Rockets committed a service error on the ensuing play to create a 14-all tie. It was Wenger who rose to the occasion, delivering back-to-back kills to give Akron the victory.
The Zips hit the road again next weekend, staying in the MAC West division when they travel to Northern Illinois and Western Michigan. Akron will take on NIU on Friday, Oct. 17 at 8 p.m. ET, followed by a clash with WMU on Saturday, Oct. 18 at 7 p.m. ET.
