MARYVILLE, Mo. – No. 10 Washburn opened the final weekend of October with a 3-1 (25-17, 21-25, 25-19, 25-23) win over Northwest Missouri State on Friday night.
 
WU (24-2, 11-2 MIAA) built a three-point lead (10-7) in the first but saw NWMSU come back to within one, 11-10, soon after.  From there, a Kelsey Barrick kill started a string of six straight for WU that made it 17-10.  Up 21-15, a Korie Thompson kill was the first of a quick three points that put the Ichabods on verge of set point, 24-15, and though NWMSU scored two of its own to extend the set, a kill from Leanna Willer ended things, 25-17.
 
The Ichabods fell behind early in the second before rallying to tie it at 10, only to see NWMSU go on a 5-1 run (15-11) that forced a WU timeout.  Out of the pause, Willer had a kill to stop the run, and soon recovered to draw within one (17-16).  The teams traded points from there, however, until 18-17 when the Bearcats went on a 5-0 run to provide separation late, 23-17.  WU climbed back to within three (23-20) but couldn't complete the comeback, dropping a 25-21 second set.
 
Tied midway through the third set at 13-all, WU took advantage of four straight NWMSU attack errors to start an 8-0 run that put the Ichabods in control, 21-13.  The Bearcats stopped the run and climbed back into contention, but Washburn held on to take the set, 25-19.
 
Looking to close out the match with a fourth set win, Washburn again found itself battling with the Bearcats throughout.  Tied at 11, Washburn gained some breathing room with a 16-13 lead, but saw NWMSU rally to tie it back up, 17-17. Back-to-back kills from Korie Thompson and a Bearcat error again put Washburn ahead by three, 20-17.  From there, NWMSU charged back to within one (24-23) but WU hung on for the win, 25-23.
 
Leanna Willer (15 kills) and Taylor Selk (13 kills) reached double-digits for the Ichabods, as Kelsey Barrick and Korie Thompson both just missed the 10-kill mark, finishing with nine and eight, respectively.
 
Liz Powell had a double-double of 28 assists and 10 digs, while Natalie Bates had 18 assists at setter.  Defenseively, Alyssa Carney dug up 16 attacks and Sarah Vicory had five blocks (one solo) to go with seven kills.  Thompson was second on the team with three blocks.
 
With the win, Washburn now moves to a half-game lead in the MIAA standings.  WU, Central Oklahoma and Missouri Western each have two losses in the conference.
 
Washburn travels to St. Joseph, Mo., on Saturday, Oct. 31 to take on the Griffons.  The Halloween matchup is set for 6 p.m.