Whitewater, Wis. -- The No. 4 UW-Whitewater volleyball team took down UW-La Crosse 3-1 (25-10, 16-25, 25-20, 25-18) behind powerful performances from
Gaby DiMotto (New Berlin, Wis./West) and
Amanda Hillmann (Cedarburg, Wis./Kettle Moraine Lutheran).
The outside-middle duo of DiMotto and Hillmann combined for 30 kills and five blocks to pace the Warhawks. DiMotto surged offensively early while Hillmann took over later in the match.
DiMotto hammered down the kill for the first point of the match to spark a 7-0 run for the Warhawks.
Abbie Dix (Brodhead, Wis./Brodhead) added a tally to the kill column before DiMotto pounded down three more.
Aubrie Krzus (Wheaton, Ill./Warrenville South) had a nifty tip and Bludgen put the finishing touches on the run with an ace for the 7-0 advantage. UWW cruised the rest of the way hitting .536 in the set led by DiMotto's eight kills and .800 attack percentage.
The Eagles flipped the script in set two taking an early lead and running away with the set to even the match 1-1.
Emily Lego (Rock Falls, Ill./Rock Falls) and Hillmann powered the Warhawks in set three. Lego, was perfect on the right side with four kills in four attempts while Hillmann had four kills in five attempts. DiMotto also tallied four kills as the Warhawks bounced back to take a 2-1 lead in the match.
Hillmann and DiMotto registered the bookends in set four -- Hillmann opened the set with a powerful kill and DiMotto hammered down an overpass for the final point of the match. Hillmann hit .833 in the fourth with five kills in six attempts adding three blocks to lead UWW to the win.
For the match, DiMotto tallied 17 kills with an attack percentage of .361. She added an ace and block. Hillmann hit .500 with 13 kills and four blocks in the contest. Lego and Krzus registered seven kills and three blocks each with Krzus posting 34 assists in the match.
Kyanne Wusterbarth (Oconto, Wis./Oconto) and Bludgen were stellar from the service line with seven combined aces.
Defensively, Dix shared match-high honors with four blocks.
Natalie Lawton (Elmhurst, Ill./IC Catholic Prep) registered 21 digs.
UW-Whitewater returns to action Saturday against the University of Chicago at 4 PM.
