Box Score Volleyball Hands No. 3 Lopers First Lost of the Season
 
TOPEKA, Kan. --- Fueled by a raucous crowd of 859, No. 17 Washburn toppled No. 3 Nebraska-Kearney, 3-1 (30-28, 32-30, 17-25, 25-21) and ended the Lopers 20-match win streak. The result Friday night also marked the first time the Ichabods had defeated an opponent ranked in the top three since November 29, 2007 when they knocked off top-ranked Tampa in the NCAA National Tournament.
 
For the second time in her career, Leanna Willer tied a school-record for most kills in a four set match with 28. The senior outside hitter previously achieved the feat on November 7, 2014. Also recording double-figure kills in the win was Sarah Vicory with 13, Taylor Selk with 11 and Makayla Maxwell with 10.
 
Natalie Bates tallied her second 50-plus assist match in less than a week as she ended the night with 59. On defense, Alyssa led the way registered a match-best 33 digs while Willer and Bates followed with 15 and 13 respectively.
 
With 15 ties and five lead changes it was easy to see that neither side wanted to concede the opening set and did well to stay in reach of one another as the largest lead held by either side a merger three points.
 
Late kills during the set from Maxwell and Willer gave Washburn (15-4, 6-1) a 24-21 advantage before Nebraska-Kearney (20-1, 6-1) scored three-straight points for a tie at 24. After back-to-back kills UNK took a slim 28-27 lead. The advantage however quickly evaporated as a pair of kills from Vicory helped WU claim the set 30-28 and take a 1-0 match lead.
 
With momentum now on its side, Washburn began the second frame with a 6-0 run to make it 8-3. The Lopers answered by scoring six of the next seven points tying it at 9-9. After staying within striking distance of each other for much of the set UNK used an 8-1 run late to push the score to 24-20. However, attack errors by the Lopers helped Washburn erase the deficit on its way to winning the set 32-30.
 
Behind a hitting percentage of .438, UNK controlled the third set tempo early and often en route to a 25-17 result to force a fourth set.
 
Trailing 18-16 late in the final set, the Ichabods rallied back and took a 20-18 lead due to a 5-0 run and a pair of kills from Selk. The Lopers tallied back-to-back scores make it 20-20, but that was the closest they came as Washburn went on to score five of the last six points to make it 25-21 and win the match 3-1.
 
The Ichabods continue league play on Saturday as they take on Fort Hays State at 3 p.m.