KENOSHA, Wis.— In the semifinals of the Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin (CCIW) Women's Volleyball Tournament, the Carthage College women's volleyball team defeated Augustana (Ill.) 3-2 Thursday night. 

• Final score: Carthage 3 - Augustana (Ill.) 2
• Location: Kenosha, Wisconsin - Tarble Arena
• Records: Carthage (21-8), Augustana (17-12)

 
 

• In the first set, Augustana (Ill.) took the early 9-7 advantage, forcing Carthage to call its first timeout.
• An array of Viking kills put Carthage in a sizable hole late in set one, allowing Augustana to win the first 25-12. 
• After evening the score, the Firebirds found their groove, collecting five-straight points to force Augustana to call its first timeout of the match. 
• A kill from Molly Skoda gave Carthage a 12-11 advantage midway through the second set. 
• Four-straight points from the Firebirds gave Carthage a 19-14 advantage. 
• Augustana (Ill.) trimmed the Firebird lead to two late in the second; however, after a pair of Kaitie Rohe kills, a thunderous kill from Skoda earned the Firebirds a victory in the second set, knotting the match at one set apiece. 
• A kill from Rohe and a block from Leena Ajibola propelled the Firebirds to an early 4-3 lead in set three. 
• Later, consecutive kills by the fifth-seeded Vikings led to a 10-9 Augustana (Ill.) lead and a Carthage timeout. 
• The Vikings continued to roll midway through the third set, expanding their advantage to 15-11. 
• A run of five-straight points for the visiting team gave Augustana (Ill.) a 22-14 margin late in the third. 
• Two straight Carthage kills - from Rohe and Skoda, respectively - brought the Firebirds within six points. 
• A loud kill from the right arm of Liv Carel set Carthage up with a 4-1 lead early in the fourth set, and a subsequent ace from Skoda caused the Vikings to take a timeout with a 5-1 deficit. 
• Carthage caught fire midway through the fourth, rattling off five points in a row to grow its margin to nine. 
• The Firebirds dominated the latter part of the set, seizing control and taking the fourth by a score of 25-12. 
• A Carel Kill brought the score to 3-2 in Carthage's favor early in the deciding set, and two more Firebird points grew the team's lead to three. The visitors were forced to call a timeout. 
• An array of Augustana (Ill.) errors led to an 8-2 Carthage lead at the changeover. 
• Devinn Bell and Skoda each tallied a kill to bring Carthage's lead to 11-5. 
• One final kill from senior Skoda gave Carthage the victory, advancing them to the CCIW Women's Volleyball Tournament Championship Final. 

 

• Three Firebirds finished with double-digit kills: Molly Skoda (15), Liv Carel (14), and Kaitie Rohe (13). 
• Skoda also had 14 digs in the contest and a team-best four aces. 
• Kiley McCarthy added 26 assists, while Devinn Bell had 21. 
• Jenna Damon added 30 digs, Leena Ajibola had a match-best seven blocks, followed by Carel with six blocks and Katie Boston with four. 
• The Firebirds return to the CCIW Finals for the fifth-straight season since 2017. 
• It marks the 17th CCIW Championship appearance since 1986 and 15th under head coach Leanne Ulmer. 

 





 

• Carthage will now host the No. 2 seed North Park at home starting at 4 p.m. on Saturday, November 5.