NAPERVILLE, Ill. – The UW-River Falls volleyball team completed an unbeaten weekend Saturday with a pair of straight-set victories, sweeping Elmhurst University and North Central College at Gregory Arena.
The Falcons dropped just one set across four matches during the weekend and improved to 20-6 on the season behind a balanced offense and strong defensive play at the net.
UWRF will carry its seven-game winning streak back into the regular season finale next Friday, Nov. 6, hosting UW-Stevens Point durig Senior Night.
UW-River Falls 3, Elmhurst 0
The Falcons opened the day with a 25-21, 25-23, 25-21 sweep of Elmhurst, overcoming a pair of tightly contested sets behind an efficient offensive performance and strong play at the net.
UW-River Falls hit .211 as a team while holding Elmhurst to a .195 attack percentage. The Falcons controlled much of the opening set before surviving a back-and-forth second frame that featured numerous ties and lead changes. River Falls then closed out the match with another four-point victory in the third set.
Emily Brenner paced the Falcon offense with 14 kills and eight digs, while Amanda Baumann added eight kills without an error and hit .471. Blessing Adebisi contributed seven kills and five block assists, helping UWRF finish with a strong advantage at the net. Cora Sayotovich recorded a double-double with 30 assists and 10 digs, and Audrey Petersen anchored the defense with a team-high 14 digs.
UW-River Falls 3, North Central 0
The Falcons completed the perfect day with a 25-21, 25-15, 25-23 victory over North Central.
After grinding out a four-point win in the opening set, UWRF delivered its best stretch of volleyball in the second, hitting .389 with 17 kills to pull away for a convincing 25-15 win. North Central challenged throughout the third set, which featured 14 tie scores and 10 lead changes, but the Falcons made the key plays late to finish off the sweep.
UW-River Falls hit .270 in the match and limited North Central to a .122 attack percentage. Blessing Adebisi led the way with 12 kills while hitting .476 and added five total blocks. Lauren Noth turned in one of her most efficient performances of the season, totaling 10 kills on .421 hitting. Brenner added seven kills, four service aces and seven digs, while Cora Sayotovich directed the attack with 33 assists. Petersen again paced the back row with 15 digs as the Falcons recorded 49 kills and seven service aces in the victory.
Adebisi totaled 19 kills and 10 blocks across the two victories, while Brenner added 21 kills. Sayotovich guided the Falcon offense to 63 assists on the day, and Petersen accumulated 29 digs as UW-River Falls finished the weekend with a pair of sweeps.
