The No. 11 ranked University of Wisconsin-Whitewater volleyball team responded with authority to a 2-1 deficit Wednesday night en route to a 26-28, 25-21, 26-24, 25-20, 16-14 victory over 17th-ranked UW-Stevens Point in the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference opener for both teams.
With the fourth set hanging in the balance at 20-20, the Warhawks (8-3 overall, 1-0 WIAC), fighting to force a fifth set, tallied five straight points, including three on kills by senior right side hitter
Sydney Racky (Walworth, Wis./Big Foot), to win the frame 25-20.
The two teams exchanged points in the fifth to a 10-10 tie before UW-Whitewater ran off three straight points on a kill by Racky and back-to-back service aces by sophomore defensive specialist
Elizabeth Tworek (Lake Zurich, Ill./Carmel Catholic).
The Pointers (13-3, 0-1) scored the next two points, but a kill by Racky gave the Warhawks two match points at 14-12.
UW-Stevens Point tied the set to force a UW-Whitewater timeout.
After another Racky kill, senior outside hitter
Shelby Clifton (Mountain Grove, Mo./Mountain Grove) and senior middle hitter
Courtney Wagner (Dekalb, Ill./Dekalb) combined for a block to end the contest in thrilling fashion.
Racky finished career highs in kills (21) and digs (14) and hit .378 to lead the offense. Wagner totaled 16 kills and eight blocks, and junior outside hitter
Amanda Spera (Antioch, Ill./Antioch) registered 11 kills. Sophomore outside hitter Rache Butterfield posted 10 kills and four digs.
Junior
Elizabeth Niestrom (Darien, Ill./Hinsdale South) finished with a career-high 56 assists and added a career-best 18 digs and two blocks.
Junior libero
Brittany Robinson (Menomonee Falls, Wis./Menomonee Falls) collected a career-high 40 digs, tied for the second-most in one match in program history, and added five assists and a team-high three service aces. Freshman defensive specialist
Abigail Boyden (Malta, Ill./DeKalb) recorded 14 digs.
The Warhawks took a 19-18 lead in the first set before the Pointers ran off six of the next seven points to take a 24-20 advantage for four set points.
UW-Whitewater scored the next four points to tie the set, but UW-Stevens Point tallied two straight points after the set was tied for a third time to take a 1-0 match lead.
The Warhawks fell behind 19-13 in the second, but finished the set on a 12-2 run on the serves of Wagner and Niestrom to level the match at 1-1.
The Pointers fought off one UW-Whitewater set point in the third and rattled off the final three points of the stanza to take a 2-1 lead heading to the fourth.
The Warhawks return to non-conference play Friday at St. Norbert for the start of a four-match road swing. First serve is set for 7 p.m. in De Pere.
