Chippewas Fall in Five to Akron

AKRON, Ohio -- For the second straight night, Central Michigan volleyball fell to a MAC opponent in five sets. On Thursday, it was Buffalo, Friday, it was Akron.

In both contests, the Chippewas fought hard and kept pressure on their opponents. However, they return to Michigan empty-handed.

Friday's contest was defined by the swapping of momentum between the two teams, which traded set wins through the first four. CMU won the first set 25-23, then Akron took set two 25-14. The Chippewas responded by taking set three 25-15, before falling in the next two sets by scores of 25-13 and 10-11, respectively.

A quick glance at CMU's hitting percentages by set is a good indicator of which ones they won. In set one, the Chippewas hit 0.367. In set three, that number climbs to a scorching .519. However, in sets two, four and five, they hit -0.034, 0.034 and -0.048.

Set one was the most competitive of the five. The teams traded blows throughout, resulting in neither team holding an advantage higher than four. Redshirt sophomore middle blocker Abby Olin and junior opposite Linnea Willer collected three kills each as CMU took the set narrowly.

While they struggled with consistency at times, the Chippewas were flat out dominant in set three. Graduate outside hitter Devon Bright shined bright in the set, registering three of CMU's first four points via kills, and ending the set with a flawless seven kills on seven attempts. The Chippewas never trailed in the set, cruising to a 25-15 advantage.

CMU served the ball well, registering 11 service aces to the Zips' nine. Ten of CMU's 11 service aces came via Willer (6) and Bright (4). However, Akron played cleaner as evidenced by its 17 errors compared to the Chippewas' 23. This contributed to the Zips' advantage in hitting percentage, hitting .295 on the night to CMU's .176.

Olin, Willer and Bright led the Chippewas in offense with 10, nine and eight kills, respectively. Junior libero Aly Gurtiza dug out 27 balls on the night - just two shy of her season-high 29. Sophomore setter Claire Ammeraal paced CMU in assists with 33, while also posting 10 digs and six kills.

The Chippewas will be off until next Thursday (Oct. 12), when they play the first match of a two-game series against Western Michigan in Kalamazoo. Both games will be played at 5 p.m. ET.

Next Event

Team Stats

Abby Olin

Linnea Willer

Devon Bright

Claire Ammeraal

Players Mentioned

Claire Ammeraal

Devon Bright

Aly Gurtiza

Abby Olin

Linnea Willer

Players Mentioned

Claire Ammeraal

Devon Bright

Aly Gurtiza

Abby Olin

Linnea Willer