The UW Oshkosh women’s volleyball swept Gustavus Adolphus College (Minnesota) in the second round of the NCAA Tournament on Nov. 17, advancing to the third round for the first time since 2009.
The Titans have made it to the third round nine times in program history and own a 5-1 all-time record at the level of the tournament.
UWO led Gustavus in all categories; 40-27 in kills, .241 to .059 in hitting percentage, 38-21 in assists, 13-1 in service aces, 63-54 in digs and eight to seven in blocks.
For the second night in a row, Sami Perlberg led Oshkosh in kills, hitting 16 kills on 36 attempts for a .389 kill percentage. Kalli Mau recorded 19 assists and 15 digs, while fellow passer Izzy Coon registered 11 and added a career-best six service aces.
Oshkosh took the first set by storm, scoring four-straight points on two kills from Perlberg, an ace from Abby Fregien and a kill by Riley Kindt. The Titans followed a Gustie point with a 7-0 run and later added a five-point spurt to gain a very comfortable lead. Perlberg set up the set point with a kill and Kindt brought the set to a close by blocking an attack from Gustavus.
The Gusties were not down for the count, fighting throughout the second set to keep the Titans on their toes. Neither team pulled more than two points away from the other until Gustavus scored three to take a 16-14 lead. Oshkosh tied the match up on kills from Kindt and Olivia Breunig, however the set stayed close and was tied as late as 23-23 before Kindt took the second set with two straight kills.
The third set was close until Emmy Wizceb started a 7-0 run that included three consecutive Amelia Hust service aces and two straight Perlberg kills. Gustavus scored three more points before a nine point run ended the set and match. Coon served the final eight points and earned the final point with her sixth service ace of the night.
The Titans return to action at the Kolf Sports Center on Nov. 18, to face the University of La Verne (California). The Leopards (25-4), who were at at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament this year, beat Otterbein University (Ohio) 3-1 on Thursday (Nov. 16) and defeated East Texas Baptist University in five sets on Nov. 17.
