TOPEKA, Kan. – No. 7 Washburn welcomed its first ranked opponent to Lee Arena on Friday, Sept. 25, and left with a 3-0 (25-23, 26-24, 25-19) sweep of No. 14 Nebraska-Kearney in front of nearly 1,500 fans.
 
A late three-point burst in the first helped Washburn (13-0, 2-0 MIAA) pull away and take the first set, 25-23, after a hard fought opening game.  Down 8-6 early, Washburn went on a 4-0 run to take the lead, but saw UNK recover and tie it, 12-all.  From there, back-and-forth play brought the game to 18-all, when a three-point rally had the Ichabods in a position to pull away, up 21-18. 
 
The Lopers (11-3, 1-1 MIAA) again recovered, however, to tie it at 21 with a three-point burst of their own.  A kill from Carley Swan was the first of three straight points for Washburn that had the Ichabods looking at set point, 24-21, and though two straight from UNK kept things close, a kill from Leanna Willer ended things and gave WU a lead.
 
The second set was another battle, with either team leading by no more than three throughout.  Washburn jumped out to an early 6-3 lead in the first, but the set was soon tied at 6-all by the Lopers.  After a tied at 9-9, the match stayed within one until set point, when a UNK attack error sent the Ichabods to intermission, ahead 2-0, thanks to a 26-24 game two win.
 
Down 16-14 in the third,  Washburn closed the third set on a 11-3 run to clinch the sweep over UNK.  Tied at 18, a kill from Sarah Vicory was the first point in a 4-0 rally that gave the Ichabods breathing room  (22-18), and though UNK stopped the run, back-to-back kills from Willer and a block assist from Taylor Selk and Swan ended things, 25-19.
 
The win over the Lopers was the first nationally-ranked win for Washburn this season, and the first win over UNK since 2013. 
 
Willer's double-double of 16 kills and 15 digs led the Ichabods, as she was one of four WU players to reach double-digits in digs.  Defensively, Alyssa Carney (22 digs) led the Ichabods, while McKenzie Hartzog (16 digs), and Korie Thompson (10 digs) also cleared the 10-dig threshold.
 
Offensively, Sarah Vicory hit .500 with 12 kills and just one error on 22 wings, adding two blocks as well.  Willer and Selk (seven kills) led the team with three blocks.  At setter, Liz Powell had 40 assists and five digs.
 
For UNK, Kaitlynn Thomas had 12 kills while three Lopers – Skyler Erickson (16 digs), Annie Wolfe (17 digs) and Ellie McDonnell (18 digs) – had double-digit digs.
 
The Ichabods close the weekend on Saturday, Sept. 26 against Fort Hays State.  Game time in Lee Arena is at 6 p.m.