Women's Volleyball

Bulls and Rockets End the Weekend With a Win

Sunday Volleyball Results
Eastern Illinois 3, Ohio 0
Cal Poly 3, Ball State 2
Buffalo 3, Rutgers 2
Toledo 3, Robert Morris 0
DePaul 3, Western Michigan 1
 
Recaps courtesy of Athletic Communications Departments

Buffalo 3, Rutgers 2 | Box Score
BUFFALO, N.Y. – In the final match of the Buffalo Invite presented by UB Dental, the Buffalo Bulls volleyball team (2-1, 0-0 MAC) defeated the visiting Rutgers Scarlet Knights (1-2, 0-0 Big Ten) in a thrilling five set match, 25-18, 25-20, 20-25, 20-25, 16-14. The last time the Bulls defeated a Big Ten opponent came on Sept. 2, 2017, when they took down the same Rutgers program, 3-2.

Buffalo's offense started where it left off yesterday. Freshman Emerson Matthews recorded her first career double-double with 12 kills and 12 digs. She added three blocks for a total of 19 points, a team high. Manoela Forlin finished with 16 kills and 18.5 points to go with her .355 hitting percentage. Forlin also had a solo block and a block assist on the afternoon. Sydney Bell totaled 10 kills as she finished with 12 points. Maddie Mitchell had a great day for the Bulls as she had 46 assists and seven kills on 12 attempts. She finished with a .583 hitting percentage.

Middle blocker Tahya Shaw showed the team's depth as she chipped in seven kills on nine attempts.

Keira Kleidon finished the day with 14 digs.

As a team, the Bulls closed the day out with 10 total blocks to Rutger's five. On the attack, Buffalo had a .333 hitting percentage as they allowed Rutgers to hit just .255.

UP NEXT: The Bulls will travel to Milwaukee, Wisc. for the Marquette Invite from Friday, Sept. 5 through Sunday, Sept. 7. They will face the Dayton Flyers, Western Kentucky Hilltoppers and the Marquette Golden Eagles.


Toledo 3, Robert Morris 0 | Box Score
TOLEDO, Ohio – The Toledo women's volleyball team swept Robert Morris, 3-0 (25-17, 25-18, 25-19) on Sunday afternoon to pick up its third-straight win and conclude the Rocket Invitational Presented by Delta Hotels by Marriot.

The Toledo (3-0) offense was led by redshirt sophomore middle blocker Sierra Pertzborn with 11 kills while sophomore right side hitter Olivia Heitkamp added eight terminations.

Senior setter Kelsey Smith tallied 27 assists to go along with seven kills and five digs. Graduate outside hitter Iremnur Elmas totaled four service aces, marking her second-straight match with three or more aces. Sophomore libero Grace Freiberger paced the defense with 16 digs.

Toledo held Robert Morris to a .041 hitting percentage throughout the match, including a .000 mark in the first set and -.029 mark in the third set.

Key Moments
  • After an early back-and-forth battle in the first set, Robert Morris took a 9-6 lead. The Rockets fired off a 6-0 surge with Iremnur Elmas behind the service line to take control, 14-11. A kill from Kelsey Smith put Toledo at set point and an error from the Colonials gave the Rockets the set win.
  • A 6-0 run in the second set, powered behind two service aces from Elmas, put the Rockets at set point, 24-16. Heitkamp hammered home her eighth kill of the afternoon to secure the set victory.
  • A kill from Jessica Costlow and ace from Grace Freiberger put Toledo ahead early in the third, 7-4. Anna Alford and Jessica Costlow combined for a block to extend the Rockets' lead, 17-10, and a kill from Kayla Ozanich helped the Rockets pick up the match victory.
Up Next: Toledo will continue non-conference play at the Comfort Inn-Vitational in Morehead, Ky. on Sept. 5-6, hosted by Morehead State. The weekend begins with a matchup against the Eagles at 10:00 a.m. on Friday, Sept. 5.