The Carthage College women's volleyball team (17-4, 1-1 CCIW), ranked No. 11 in the Oct. 6th AVCA Poll, traveled to North Central College (Ill.) in Naperville, Ill. on Friday, Oct. 9th to participate in the "2015 Tiffany Robinson Memorial Tournament."
 
In their first match of the weekend, the Lady Reds took on the Panthers of Purdue—North Central (5-16) in a 2 p.m. match. The Lady Reds started the set with a strong six-point run to take the lead 6-0 before the Panthers could earn their first point. The Lady Reds would keep a gigantic lead throughout the set and would win the first set 25-11 over Purdue—North Central.
 
Carthage would start the second set in a similar fashion by making an eight-point run to take the early lead. After allowing the Panthers to score three points, the Lady Reds would go on another short run to take the lead 14-3. Carthage would remain in control for the rest of the set and went on to win 25-9, extending their lead to 2-0 in the match.
 
The Panthers struck early in the third set and would take a 3-1 lead over the Lady Reds. Carthage was going to lose control of this match and tied the game at 3-3 thanks to two kills by Jaime Dickinson. Carthage was able to stunt the momentum of the Panthers and took a 10-3 lead on a dynamic nine-point run. Purdue—North Central would try to keep up with the Lady Reds, but would ultimately fall short.  Carthage won the third set by a score of 25-9, and clinched their 3-0 sweep of the Panthers.
 
As a team the Lady Reds recorded 38 kills, a season-high 13 aces, three blocks, 35 assists, 34 digs and hit .351. Jaime Dickinson, Stephanie Korbakes and Emily Heuermann each recorded five kills. Karen Chin and Bria Hailey each earned three aces along with Luci Krenzke's two. Chin made 23 assists in the match and Krenzke made eight digs.
 
Carthage took on No. 1 Washington University in St. Louis (Mo.) (19-1) in their second match of the day at 6 p.m. Both teams showed their strength and skill immediately in the first set of the match. The score stayed close throughout the set until Carthage was able to pull away and win in the last few points with a score of 25-21.
 
In the second set, Carthage took the lead early but the Bears were able to tie the score quickly at 6-6. The Lady Reds did not want to lose control of the match and took the lead 8-6. The Lady Reds would keep their lead throughout the set and won 25-16, making the score 2-0.
 
Washington University took a 3-0 lead in the first set before an attack error by the Bear's Amanda Palucki would earn Carthage their first point of the set. The Bears would continue to lead until a Kill by Megan Fallert would tie the score 8-8. The score would stay tight for most of the set until WashU would break away with the lead towards the end of the set. The Bears would win the set 25-22 and would now only trail the Lady Reds by one set.
 
The fourth set started on a high note for the Lady Reds as they took the 1-0 lead on a kill by Emily Heuermann. After WashU tied the score 2-2, the Lady Reds took control and went on a four-point run to make the score 7-3. The Bears would tie the score up at 16-16 and take the lead immediately after. The Lady Reds would tie the score at 17-17 off of a service error by the Bears and a kill by Emily Heuermann would put Carthage up 18-17. WashU would score again on a kill by Jackie Nelligan and would then go on a four-point run to take the lead 22-19. The Bears would continue to lead the set and would win 25-22, forcing a fifth set.
 
The Lady Reds would strike first in the fifth set due to an attack error by WashU's Nkiru Udenze. Both teams would stay within one point of each other until WashU was able to take a four-point lead, 11-7. The Bears would retain the lead for the remainder of the set and would win the set 15-10, securing their 3-2 win over the Lady Reds.
 
Carthage made 55 kills, three aces, two blocks, 52 assists, 33 digs and hit .408 in the match against the Bears. Stefanie Romanowski recorded 12 kills along with Emily Heuermann's 11 and Stephanie Korbakes' eight. Karen Chin completed 36 assists and Luci Krenzke was credited with 15 digs in the match.
 
The Lady Reds will continue to play in the "2015 Tiffany Robinson Memorial Tournament" on Saturday at North Central College (Ill.) in Naperville, Ill. Carthage will face Saint Mary's University (Minn.) at 9 a.m. and Coe College at 1 p.m.