ST. LOUIS — The Carthage College women's volleyball team opened up its 2025 season, going 3-1 at the WashU Tournament over the weekend. 


Game One 

• Final Score: Carthage 3 – Willamette 2 (25-22, 23-25, 22-25, 25-14, 16-14)
• Location: St. Louis, MO - WashU Field House
• Records: Carthage 1-0, Willamette 0-1

Game Two 

• Final Score: Carthage 3 – Bluffton 1 (25-12, 25-12, 21-25, 25-21)
• Location: St. Louis, MO - WashU Field House
• Records: Carthage 2-0, Bluffton 0-1

Game Three

• Final Score: Carthage 3 – Loras 1 (25-11, 23-25, 25-20, 25-16)
• Location: St. Louis, MO - WashU Field House
• Records: Carthage 3-0, Loras 0-1

Game Four 

• Final Score: No. 11 WashU 3 – Carthage 2 (25-21, 22-25, 14-25, 26-24, 15-6)
• Location: St. Louis, MO – WashU Field House
• Records: WashU 4-0, Carthage 3-1

Game One 

• The Firebirds opened strong with early kills from Kristina Manojlovic and Ava Dettwiler.
• Willamette took advantage of service errors to stay close, tying the set 10–10.
• Macy Wente gave Carthage a spark with back-to-back kills.
• Late aces from Cassidy Stahl and kills from Hailey Wierzgac pushed Carthage to set point.
• Despite a brief Willamette rally, Carthage closed the set on a Bearcats attack error, 25–22.
• Willamette rebounded, but Carthage battled back behind kills from Manojlovic and Katie Boston, but errors allowed Willamette to build a 20–15 lead.
• A late Firebird run, including a block from Wierzgac, cut the deficit to one.
• However, a final point for Willamette evened the match at 1–1.
• Willamette carried momentum, racing to a 14–9 lead.
• Carthage rallied with kills from Manojlovic and Wierzgac, pulling within 22–21.
• Willamette held on through the final stretch, sealing the 25–22 win and a 2–1 match lead.
• With their backs against the wall, the Firebirds dominated early, jumping ahead 8–3 behind Manojlovic and Dettwiler.
• Strong serving from Kyla McTeague and defensive stops at the net by Wierzgac extended the gap.
• Carthage's balance showed with kills from Sydney Horacek and Boston, overwhelming Willamette.
• Dettwiler closed the set with an ace and a feed to Madilyn Danielson for the clinching kill, 25–14.
• In the deciding frame, the teams traded blows early, tied 10–10.
  Willamette retaliated, but Carthage countered with timely kills from Manojlovic and Wierzgac.
• At 14, the Firebirds showed composure, scoring the final two points on a block and a Manojlovic kill.
• Carthage sealed the comeback, 16–14, taking the match 3–2.

Game Two

• After a back-and-forth opening few points, Carthage took control when Ava Dettwiler and Kristina Manojlovic delivered consecutive kills to spark a run.
• A service ace from Kyla McTeague and back-to-back Bluffton hitting errors pushed the Firebirds ahead 12–5.
• Bluffton struggled offensively with 11 attack errors in the set, finishing at -.200 hitting.
• Macy Wente closed the set with a kill, followed by a Dettwiler service ace to seal it, 25–12.
• Carthage again jumped ahead early with a 3–0 start, fueled by Manojlovic's kills.
• The Firebirds dominated the middle portion of the frame with strong serving — Dettwiler (1 ace), McTeague (1 ace), and Cassidy Stahl (2 aces).
• Bluffton had no answer for Carthage's .476 attack percentage in the set, led by Manojlovic and Katie Boston at the net.
• Carthage rattled off the final four points, ending on another Stahl ace and a Manojlovic kill, taking a commanding 2–0 match lead.
• Bluffton responded with much-needed kills in the third
• Carthage built an early 14–7 advantage, but Bluffton fought back with a 7–2 run, highlighted by Ella Taylor's service ace.
• The Beavers tied it at 20 and pulled away behind a pair of late kills. 
• Carthage errors at the finish gave Bluffton the 25–21 win, keeping the match alive.
• The tightest set of the night featured five ties and three lead changes.
• Bluffton grabbed an early 6–3 lead, but Carthage answered with kills from Dettwiler and Manojlovic.
• With the score 16–14, Carthage surged thanks to a Stahl service ace and a block by Delaney Rogge, pushing the margin to 19–14.
• Bluffton cut it to 22–21 after a kill by Brentlinger, but Carthage steadied — Boston notched back-to-back kills, and the Firebirds closed the match 25–21.

Game Three

• Carthage came out firing with Manojlovic and Wierzgac putting away early kills to set the tone.
• Madilyn Danielson made an immediate impact with back-to-back kills midway through the frame, while Jenna Damon fueled the run with two service aces in a row.
• Loras struggled offensively with eight attack errors and a -.036 hitting percentage, unable to slow down Carthage's balanced attack.
• Kyla McTeague sealed the set with an ace followed by a Loras hitting miscue, giving Carthage a dominant 25–11 win.
• Loras flipped the momentum, racing to a 4–0 lead behind Sophie Younkin's serving (including an ace) and Elaina Schroeder's kill.
• Carthage clawed back with kills from Manojlovic and Delaney Rogge, eventually evening the score at 11–11 on another Damon ace.
• The Duhawks capitalized on Carthage errors late, including a rare ball-handling error on setter Ava Dettwiler, to push ahead 24–22.
• Carthage staved off one set point with a Manojlovic kill, but Sophie Younkin closed it out at 25–23 to even the match.
• Both sides traded blows early — eight ties and four lead changes — with Emma Crow and Danielson chipping in kills for Carthage.
• A key sequence came at 20: Cassidy Stahl served an ace, then set up back-to-back kills from Katie Boston and Manojlovic to give Carthage control.
• The Firebirds finished on a 5–0 closing run, capped by a Loras attack error, to take the set 25–20 and a 2–1 lead in the match.
• Carthage wasted no time jumping ahead, as Boston, Dettwiler, and Manojlovic scored on three straight plays.
• Loras kept within striking distance early, but a Dettwiler/Boston block and a Kebisek service ace stretched the Firebird advantage to 16–10.
• Danielson continued her strong afternoon, hammering kills on the left pin, while Manojlovic notched her 20th kill of the match.
• Macy Wente came off the bench to provide the final point with a kill, sealing the match 25–16.

Game Four

• Carthage started strong with a Cassidy Stahl ace and a pair of Kristina Manojlovic kills for a 2–0 lead.
• WashU responded with a 5–0 burst, powered by Naya Ohuabunwa, Leah Oyewole, and Eva Boling at the net.
• The Firebirds rallied to tie at 15 after Manojlovic and Madilyn Danielson connected on back-to-back kills.
• Down the stretch, WashU's block took over. Ohuabunwa and Nia Jones combined for key points, and setter Sam Buckley ended it with a kill for a 25–21 win.
• The set swung back and forth, featuring seven ties and one lead change.
• Katie Boston anchored Carthage with six kills in the set, including a momentum-changing swing at 12.
• WashU built a 19–15 edge, but Carthage stormed back with a 10–3 finishing run fueled by Hailey Wierzgac's block and kill.
• Tatum Kebisek sealed it with a service ace, and Manojlovic finished with her 10th kill as Carthage tied the match 1–1.
• Carthage dominated from the opening serve, racing out to a 7–1 lead behind Danielson's ace and multiple kills from Manojlovic.
• WashU struggled in serve-receive and committed eight attack errors, hitting just .075 for the frame.
• Ava Dettwiler distributed beautifully, assisting on nine different kills as Boston, Danielson, and Manojlovic all chipped in.
• Carthage closed it on a WashU setting miscue, taking the commanding set 25–14 for a 2–1 match lead.
• The most dramatic set of the day featured seven ties and three lead changes.
• Carthage surged ahead 17–11 after Manojlovic served back-to-back aces and Boston stuffed a key block.
• WashU clawed back with a run sparked by Leah Oyewole, who had three straight kills.
• At 24, WashU fended off set point with a Carthage error, then closed it out 26–24 with Jones' kill on set point to force a deciding fifth.
• Carthage opened strong again, as Manojlovic scored the first three points with kills, giving the Firebirds a 3–0 cushion.
• WashU flipped the momentum immediately — Avery Reed's serve run (ace included) and Oyewole's four kills powered a 9–0 Bear rally.
• Carthage couldn't recover in the fifth, as WashU finished the comeback 15–6, taking the match 3–2.

• Kristina Manojlovic led the Firebirds with 80 total kills this weekend. Manojlovic totaled 20 or more kills in three out of four games, including 20 against Loras. Seven shy of the program's best in a four-set match. 
• Jenna Damon added 72 digs during the weekend while Ava Dettwiler registered 105 assists for Carthage. 
• Hailey Wierzgac recorded 16 total blocks through four games, and Cassidy Stahl had nine aces. 

"We played a lot of volleyball this weekend," said head coach Leanne Ulmer. "We were able to win the opener in a tight fifth set, then play some strong volleyball against the next two opponents. We had #11 Wash U down 20-15 in the fourth, up 2-1 in sets, but let it slip away. Ava Dettwiler had a big role setting and hitting, and played well all weekend! Kristina Manojlovic is a workhorse for us and had many big kills and passed well all weekend! Madilyn Danielson came up big, hitting, passing, and serving! Jenna Damon anchored the back row and had some strong defense and tough serve receive. Our middles, Katie Boston and Hailey Wierzgac, were tough at the net. A good opening weekend!"

• Carthage faces Lake Forest and Aurora with games scheduled for 10 a.m. and noon on Saturday, September 6.