The UW-River Falls women's volleyball team were shutout 3-0 on the road by the first place UW-Whitewater Warhawks on Saturday afternoon in Whitewater, Wisconsin.
 
Whitewater improves to 4-0 in the WIAC, but first place was on the line as UWRF entered the match with a 3-1 conference record. The turning point in the match was the 29-27 second set win by the Warhawks as UWRF desperately attempted to tie the contest.
 
Whitewater won the first set 25-14. UWRF led early, 5-4, and only trailed by three midway through the set at 13-10, but the Warhawks outscored the Falcons 12-4 to finish set number one.
 
The second set was highly contested throughout. UWRF scored five consecutive points after trailing 6-4. The two teams were tied an amazing 23 times, but the Warhawks won the final two points of the set to grab a 2-0 lead. The Falcons finished the second set with 16 kills, which equaled its total for sets one and three. UWRF committed only one error in the second set—UWRF committed 15 unforced errors in the match.
 
Whitewater swept the match with another win in set three; the Warhawks took the set 25-20. The teams were tied at 14 but the Warhawks won 11 of the final 17 points and seven of the final 11.
 
It was a tough day for the Falcons offense as junior Lisa Keppers led UWRF with only 10 points. Sophomore Raven Klein and junior Rebecca Gasper both finished with a team-high three blocks. Klein finished with 28 assists, and Keppers registered the only other assist.
 
Keppers also led the way with nine kills. Gasper and sophomore Tayler Fertig both finished with six kills. Sophomore Michaela Piechowski had the only ace for the Falcons. Junior Lexi Pingel and junior Brianna Muetzel led the Falcons with eight digs each. Gasper finished with 7.5 points; Fertig had 6.5 points; and Muetzel earned 5.5 points.
 
Junior Jessica Sabey led the Warhawks with 15 points and 13 kills. Senior Kim Frei finished with 44 assists. Freshman Courtney Wagner had the Warhawks' three aces. Senior Kelsey Nobilio had 20 digs for Whitewater.
 
UW-River Falls drops to 9-12 overall, 3-2 in the WIAC, 1-6 on the road, and have now lost four straight. Whitewater improves to 16-5 overall, 4-0 in the WIAC, 7-2 at home, and have won seven straight. The Warhawks also improve to 46-12 all-time against the Falcons.
 
The Falcons host the "UW-River Falls Tournament," which is a round robin tournament that UWRF has not hosted since 2012, on Friday and Saturday. The Falcons open with the Luther College Norse at 5 p.m. on Friday in the Karges Center. UWRF will also play Bethel University, Central College and Augsburg College on the weekend. The Falcons are 10-2 all-time against the Norse.

Box Score