KENOSHA, Wis. - The Carthage College women's volleyball team (24-7, 4-2 CCIW), ranked No. 14 in the Oct. 27 AVCA Top 25 Poll, took on the Wheaton College Thunder (10-16, 2-4 CCIW) at Tarble Arena on Tuesday, Oct. 27th. The team also took time to celebrate "Senior Night" by honoring graduating seinors Karen Chin, Bria Hailey, and Emily Heuermann for the outstanding accomplishments they made on and off the court during their time at Carthage.

After the Thunder earned the first point of the match, Emily Heuermann made a kill that would start a three-point run for the Lady Reds, putting them up 3-1 over Wheaton. Carthage would complete a few short runs to take the lead 15-8 and force a Wheaton timeout. Wheaton would attempt to come back with a six-point run late in the set to make the score 24-20 in favor of the Thunder. Unfortunately for Wheaton, Stefanie Romanowski and Stephanie Korbakes made a fantastic block on an attempt by Wheaton's Shelby Knowles. With this point, the Lady Reds secured their win of the set with a score of 25-20.

The second set was an exciting defensive battle between Carthage and Wheaton as there was no clear leader until the Thunder took a 23-20 lead late in the set. Wheaton held onto their their lead and won the set 25-23, tying the match 1-1.

Carthage took control immediately in the third set and took an early 3-1 lead over the Thunder. An impressive kill down the line by Emily Heuermann would extend the Lady Red's lead 13-9 towards the middle of the set. Shortly after, the Lady Reds went on a three-point run that included a kill by Karen Chin and two Wheaton errors to widen the Lady Red's lead to 20-14. Carthage would sustain their lead over the Thunder and win the third set 25-20 on a block by Stephanie Korbakes and Stefanie Romanowski, boosting their lead in the match to 2-1.

Emily Heuermann earned a kill on a ball from Karen Chin to win the Lady Reds the first point of the fourth set. Wheaton would force a timeout by the Lady Reds following a three-point run that earned them a 7-4 lead over Carthage. The Lady Reds were finally able to tie the game at 11 points apiece on a block by Bria Hailey and Stephanie Korbakes. After giving the Thunder two points on two errors, the Lady Reds were able to tie the game once again at 13-13 thanks to an attack error by the Thunder and a kill by Jaime Dickinson. The Thunder were eventually forced to take a time out as the Lady Reds took an 18-16 lead on a kill by Romanowski and an attack error by Wheaton's Amanda Smith.

Following the timeout, Carthage extended their lead to 21-16 on two key blocks and an another attack error by the Thunder. The Lady Reds defended their lead and won the fourth set 25-20 on a kill by Stefanie Romanowski, securing their 3-1 win over the Thunder (25-20, 23-25, 25-20, 25-20).

"The match tonight was a must win," said head coach Leanne Ulmer, "I thought the girls came out strong, and even after a set back in set two, really pulled together to get it done. Our blocking came on strong in the fourth set and that helped us build a lead. It was important win and doing it on senior night was special. Karen Chin, Emily Heuermann and Bria Hailey mean so much to our program and I know the girls were happy to get them a win tonight."

As a team, the Lady Reds recorded 54 kills, five aces, 17 blocks, 51 assists, 64 digs and hit .211. In comparison, the Thunder recorded 48 kills, three aces, nine blocks, 48 assists, 64 digs and hit .115. Jaime Dickinson led the Lady Reds in kills with 13, accompanied by Emily Heuermann with 12 and Stephanie Korbakes with 10, respectively. Karen Chin, Bria Hailey and Heuermann each recorded one service ace. Stefanie Romanowski completed a career-high 12 blocks and Karen Chin made 37 assists. Luci Krenzke led Carthage in digs with 18, along with Chin and Heuermann who each recorded 15.

The Lady Reds will travel to Bloomington, Ill. on Oct. 30-31 to compete in the 2015 Illinois Wesleyan "Barker Chevrolet Classic IV". Carthage will face Concordia University (Wis.) at 5:30 p.m. and Hiram College at 7:30 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 30. On Saturday, the Lady Reds will take on the University of Chicago at 10 a.m. and DePauw University at 2 p.m. Carthage will then finish their regular season and CCIW schedule on Tuesday, Nov. 3rd at 7 p.m. as they travel to Elmhurst, Ill. to take on Elmhurst College.