Aurora, Ill. - The University of Wisconsin-La Crosse volleyball team split a pair of duals Friday night at Thornton Gymnasium. The Eagles opened with a 3-0 (25-23, 25-22, 25-17) win over Edgewood College (Wis.) before a 3-1 (25-23, 23-25, 25-14, 25-15) loss to host Aurora University (Ill.).  UWL is now 14-13 on the season. 

In the win over Edgewood (Wis.), UWL trailed 13-8 in the opening set when it went on a 11-4 run to lead 19-17 on a Liz Lansink kill. The set was tied at 20-20, but three straight attack errors from Edgewood (Wis.) gave UWL a three-point lead.  Anna Rossner and Emma Lawrence combined on the block on the third error.  Edgewood (Wis.) cut the lead to 23-22, but Lawrence's kill made it a two-point game.  Mackenzie Doherty's kill for Edgewood (Wis.) cut it to 24-23 before Lawrence ended the set with a kill. 

UWL never trailed in the second set, scoring the first seven points.  Edgewood (Wis.) later cut it to 13-10 before UWL used a 6-1 run to lead 19-11 on a Rossner kill. Edgewood (Wis.) responded with a 11-4 run to cut it to 23-22. Lawrence followed with a kill and a ball handling error on Edgewood (Wis.) gave UWL the second set victory.  

The third set was tied, 7-7, when UWL went on a 7-2 run to lead 14-9.  Edgewood (Wis.) could get no closer than three points the rest of the set. 

Lawrence led UWL with 17 kills while Lansink, Rossner and Brianne Korducki each had four.  Abbey Fox finished with 24 assists as the Eagles hit .190 (38-18-105).  Fox had a team-high 11 digs with Isabelle Jensen finishing with 10.  UWL had 7.0 team blocks. 

Doherty led Edgewood (Wis.) with 13 kills with Brittany Sager finishing with 15 assists and Elia Carpenter with 12.  The Eagles hit .126 (32-19-103). Sarah Uczen had 14 digs and Amanda Meister 12.  Edgewood (Wis.) had 5.0 team blocks.

Versus Aurora (Ill.), the first set was tied, 12-12, when the Spartans scored the next three points for a 15-12 lead. UWL later cut the lead to 20-18 and forced a 22-22 tie on a Lansink kill.  A pair of kills for Aurora (Ill.) from Lindsey Simpson and Sydnei Avery gave the Spartans a 24-22 advantage. Rossner's kills cut it to 24-23, but an Eagles' service error gave the Spartans the opening set. 

UWL never trailed in the second set. The set was tied, 4-4, when the Eagles went on a 9-3 run to lead 13-7. Aurora (Ill.) scored four straight points to cut the deficit to 13-11, but UWL responded with a 6-1 run to lead 19-12. The Spartans used a 9-5 to cut it to 24-23, but Lawrence secured the set with a kill. 

Aurora (Ill.) never trailed in the third or fourth set. The Spartans raced out to a 7-2 lead in the third set. The Eagles cut the lead to 8-6, but could get no closer the rest of the set. Scoring the first five points of the fourth set, Aurora (Ill.) led 14-2 on back-to-back aces from Simpson. UWL could get no closer than nine the rest of the way.

Lawrence led UWL with 17 kills while Lansink and Rossner each totaled eight.  Fox had 37 assists as the Eagles hit .130 (48-23-192). Sophie Quelle and Courtney Conway led five players in double figures in digs with 18.  Lawrence recorded a double-double with 16 digs while Fox also recorded a double-double with 12 digs. Summer Schwenn had 11 digs.  UWL had 4.0 team blocks. 

Avery led Aurora (Ill.) with 24 kills. Imani Freeman and Karli Chambers each had 10. Miranda Cada recorded 46 assists as the Spartans hit .190 (57-21-189). Julia Wood had a match-high 32 digs while Makayla Fincher finished with 23 with Kaycie Wenzel and Cada each finishing with 17.  Aurora (Ill.) had 2.0 team blocks.

UWL returns to action Saturday, October 26 at North Park University (Wis.) at noon.