Pioneer upset stifled by No. 19 Titans, 3-2

Written by: Jeremy Williamson, Sports Information Student Assistant

PLATTEVILLE, Wis. -- The Pioneer volleyball team (9-9) hosted Cancer Awareness Night against the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh Titans (14-3) on Wednesday. In a five-set battle, the Titans ended up winning the night in an exhilarating 15-12 final match.

The Titans began the night scoring the first two points of the set, but a Lauren Grady kill sparked the ensuing 12-5 Pioneer run, 17-7. UW-Platteville used that early lead to avoid an upset as the Titans rallied a 16-8 run, but it was not enough. The Pioneers took set one 25-23.

By the end of the night, Grady earned a team-high 17 kills off of 28 attempts with three errors.

The second set was so back-and-forth that the largest gap occurred about halfway through when the Pioneers took a 12-7 lead. Following a short Titan run, the score did not expand beyond a two-point differential until UW-Platteville went up 23-20 and eventually utilized an Oshkosh error to take match two, 25-22, and go up 2-0 on the night.

Game three sparked the Titan's run that eventually led to UW-Platteville's downfall. The Pioneer's led the entire set until UW-Oshkosh broke the streak and tied it at 15. Another Grady kill enable the Pioneers to take the lead once again at 21-20, but the relentlessness of the Titans brought them their first win of the night.

The Titans continued their execution through the fourth set, as they jumped out to a 14-8 start. A Maddie Dower service ace and a few Titan errors brought the match back to a tie at 17. Unfortunately UW-Oshkosh went on an 8-4 run and took game four, 25-21, forcing a final match.

Three more Grady kills, followed by back-to-back smashes from Rachel Ambroch and Kelley Lynch put the Pioneers up 5-1 and in a good position to take match five. The Titans went on a 7-2 run before the teams swapped sides with the score in favor of the opposition, 8-7. Six ensuing lead changes later the score evened up at 11, but it was UW-Oshkosh who ended up with the victory, 15-12.

The Titan's offense produced seven more kills than the Pioneers, 66-59, but the Pioneers attempted two more, 169-167. Lynch anchored the Pioneer defense with 12 digs and three block attempts, while also attempting a team-high 36 kills, finishing off 12 of them.

The volleyball team returns to Bo Ryan Court on Saturday for a doubleheader against Kalamazoo College and Carthage College, beginning at 10a.m. and 2p.m., respectively.