Aubrie Krzus serving during a match from earlier this season (Michael Gouvion)
By Angela Kelm
Asst. Athletic Director for Sports Information
The No. 7 University of Wisconsin-Whitewater volleyball team swept No. 17 UW-Platteville 3-0 (25-15, 25-20, 27-25) in the team’s regular season home finale Wednesday night. Before the start of the match, the Warhawks recognized its senior class including Ally Longden, Hannah Proctor, Ava Rebarchik, Jaedynn Evans, Alayna Jansky, Ally Warburton, Jenna Weinfurt and Payton Kuepers.
UWW was efficient hitting .320 while adding 10 aces and 12 blocks in the match. The defense held the Pioneers to an attack percentage of .190 in the contest.
The Warhawks jumped out to a quick 7-4 lead bolstered by a string of four points that included a pair of kills from Jansky and two aces from Aubrie Krzus. Later in the set, UWW went on a 6-0 run that featured four more aces with Krzus at the service line. From there, the Warhawks cruised to the first set win 25-15.
Set two was a back-and-forth battle until UW-Whitewater scored five consecutive to take an 18-14 lead. Jansky put the finishing touches on the set with a kill for the 25-20 final.
UW-Whitewater jumped out to a 9-3 advantage in the third set but ended up needing to stave off a huge 9-0 Pioneer run late in the set. The spurt put UWP up 23-20 but the Warhawks were up for the challenge. Kills from Chloe Werner and Proctor sandwiched a Pioneer miscue to tie the set 23-23. The squads traded points with UW-Platteville holding a 25-24 lead when UWW strung together three in a row. Werner picked up the first point with a kill. The next two showcased why UW-Whitewater is the best blocking team in Division III — Abbie Dix and Krzus turned away a pair of attacks with two huge blocks to secure the win.
Outsides Jansky and Weinfurt combined for 24 kills to lead UWW offensively. Defensively, Proctor tallied six blocks while fellow middle Dix posted five. Evans and Weinfurt registered nine digs each.
Krzus had a monster night all around for the Warhawks. In addition to 31 assists, the setter hit .571 with four kills in seven attempts without an attack error. She added seven aces – a mark that is the third-most recorded by a Warhawk in a single match and shared match-high honors with six blocks.
With one match left in league play, UW-Whitewater is third in the current WIAC standings with a 4-2 record. UW-Oshkosh and UW-Stevens Point sit atop the standings at 5-1 while three teams are tied for fourth through sixth with a 3-3 mark.
UWW will head to Elmhurst Wednesday before wrapping up the regular season at UW-Stout on Friday, November 8.
