The No. 7 ranked University of Wisconsin-Whitewater volleyball team tallied its 14th consecutive win Friday night, defeating UW-River Falls 15-25, 25-22, 25-21, 22-25, 18-16 in a Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference contest in River Falls, Wis.
 
The Warhawks (20-3 overall, 5-0 WIAC) fought off match point at 16-15 in the fifth set and rallied to score the last three points to remain alone in first place in the conference standings.
 
In a defensive struggle, neither team hit over .239 during any set, and the two teams combined for 202 digs.
 
Freshman outside hitter Chloe Buescher (Janesville, Wis./Milton) totaled a team-high 14 kills and added 17 digs and three blocks for her ninth double-double of the year. Sophomore outside hitter Erin McNeil (Crystal Lake, Ill./Prairie Ridge) posted 12 kills and six digs, and senior middle hitter Ashton Doll (Lancaster, Wis./Lancaster) collected 11 kills and four blocks.
 
Senior outside hitter Rachel Butterfield (Milton, Wis./Milton) registered 10 kills and two digs. Sophomore setter KellyAnn Sotiros (New Berlin, Wis./West Allis Hale) finished with a double-double on 22 assists and 12 digs, and freshman setter Maggie Streckert (Arlington Heights, Ill./Buffalo Grove) recorded 22 assists, three digs, two kills and two blocks.
 
Freshman libero Morgan Jensen (Sun Prairie, Wis./Sun Prairie) led a group of five players with double-figure digs at 29 to go along with five assists and three service aces. Sophomore outside hitter Emma Aske (Aurora, Ill./Metea Valley) contributed 15 digs, three kills and two blocks, while sophomore defensive specialist Hailey Mackenthun (Webster, Minn./Northfield) tallied 14 digs and four service aces.
 
UW-Whitewater never led in the first set as the Falcons (15-12, 1-4) jumped out to a 10-4 advantage and eventually led 18-9. The Warhawks drew to within five at 20-15 before UW-River Falls scored the final five points to take the first set.
 
The Falcons led 12-7 in the second before UW-Whitewater mounted a comeback on Aske's serve to tie the set at 13-13. After a point by UW-River Falls, the Warhawks ran off the next four points on Jensen's serve for a 17-14 advantage. The Falcons tied it at 22-22 before UW-Whitewater rallied for the final three points of the set, including two on kills by Doll.
 
The Warhawks jumped out to an 11-4 advantage in the third on Mackenthun's and Aske's serves. UW-River Falls rallied later in the set to narrow a 22-14 deficit down to two points, but UW-Whitewater scored three of the final four points in the frame, including two on kills by Buescher and the deciding point on a kill by Streckert.
 
The Falcons led 7-2 early in the fourth before the Warhawks embarked on a 16-5 run to take an 18-12 advantage. UW-River Falls then ran off 12 of the next 16 points, including four of the last five, to force a fifth set.
 
UW-W built a 12-6 lead in the fifth, but the Falcons rallied again with three straight points. The Warhawks scored the next two and had six match points turned away to set up the dramatic finish.
 
UW-Whitewater returns to action Wednesday at UW-Oshkosh, which is one game behind the Warhawks for first place in the league. Match time is slated for 7 p.m.