Aug. 31, 2007
Indianapolis, Indiana - Utah Valley won back-to-back matches on Friday with a 3-1 (27-30, 30-24, 30-21, 30-26) win over Northern Illinois after prevailing in a five-game match (21-30, 30-24, 30-24, 28-30, 15-8) over Tennessee Tech on Friday at the Butler Invitational in Indianapolis.
"To play back-to-back games like that is not an ideal situation, especially after going five games in the first match, but the girls just wanted it, " said head coach Sam Atoa. "They turned a tough situation into something great. I'm so proud of their effort and what they've done today. We got contributions from every girl on the team."
In the win over Northern Illinois, senior Jessica Endres became the first Wolverine volleyball player to record 1,000 career kills, finishing with 20 kills and a .529 hitting percentage in the match.
"That's awesome," said Atoa of Endres' accomplishment. "That just shows that hard work and determination really pay off. Since she was a freshman she came in and contributed. I'm happy for her to be able to accomplish that."
UV fell behind after the Huskies took game one but swept the next three to improve to 2-1 on the young season.
The Wolverines hit .293 in the match, including .372 in pivotal game three, a 30-21 win.
Camie Manwill had 21 kills and 18 digs and has recorded double-doubles in all three matches this season. Allyce Wilson had 25 digs while Kayli Broadbent had 11 kills and Kristi Lindley had 58 assists.
The Huskies made things interesting in their attempt to force a fifth game, trimming a 28-21 Wolverine lead to 28-26. But Lindley assisted two straight Endres kills to finish the match.
In the match against Tennessee Tech, Manwill 22 kils and 16 digs while Wilson also had a double-double with 21 digs and 13 assists. Endres recorded 17 kills Broadbent had 15 kills and hit .308.
After dropping the opening game, UV won games two and three to take a 2-1 lead. Game four saw the Golden Eagles build a 26-16 lead before the Wolverines scored eight straight points as part of a 11-2, cutting the lead to one at 28-27.
Despite eventually falling 30-28 in the game, Utah Valley used the momentum it gained down the stretch of game four to build a 10-3 lead on its way to a 15-8 win in game five.
Up next is a match with host Butler on Saturday at 10am MT. Gametracker of that match is available by going the volleyball schedule page at www.WolverineGreen.com.
