By Patrick Stumpf
GREEN BAY, Wis. (GreenBayPhoenix.com) – The Green Bay volleyball team took the floor for the final time in the regular season on Saturday afternoon, setting the tone early before cruising to a sweep of Milwaukee (25-21, 25-23, 25-21) on Senior Day at the Klotsche Center.
“I thought it was a really good team-effort,” said head coach Sean Burdette. “The bench was awesome today; we fought through three really tough sets. It's tough to win on the road, especially against a rival like Milwaukee.”
Sophomore Taylor Totka and freshman Jessica Wolf recorded a team-high 13 kills apiece, hitting .526 and .429 respectively, as the Phoenix clinched the No. 5 seed in next weekend's Horizon League Tournament which will be held in Cleveland, Ohio. Green Bay (17-12, 8-8) will take on Northern Kentucky, who it fell to twice in a pair of five-set marathons on Oct. 2 and Oct. 31.
The Phoenix hit .432 (19-of-37) as a team in the opening set, receiving 17 assists from senior setter Emily Riese to take a 1-0 match advantage. The second set featured 14 ties and nine lead changes in total, as Green Bay made a three-point run late to lead, 21-18, before Milwaukee answered with three points of its own. The Phoenix rallied, however, as Wolf gave her team a commanding 2-0 lead following her 10th kill going into intermission.
After the Panthers forced an early Green Bay timeout in set three by taking a 8-3 edge, the Phoenix responded on a 11-6 run to tie the score at 14. It would take the lead soon after, and go on to beat UWM in three-set fashion for the second time this season, marking the first time since 1994 it has won consecutive matches against Milwaukee. It was also just the first time since Nov. 8, 2002, that Green Bay has won at the Klotsche Center.
Burdette's team hit .277 on the match, while holding the Panthers to just .195 on Senior Day.
“You would like to go into any postseason play on a win,” Burdette said. “It gives us a good starting base before going on the road again.”'
Green Bay will now shift its attention to next weekend, as it travels to Cleveland for the start of its “second season.” Since the tournament format was modified to only include the top-six programs in 2009, the Phoenix has made a postseason appearance in five of the last six seasons.
The last time Green Bay advanced out of the quarterfinal round was in 2006 (L, 3-1, Milwaukee).
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