No. 1 Illinois Wesleyan 3, Carthage 0
BLOOMINGTON, Ill. - The Carthage women's volleyball team fell to No. 1 Illinois Wesleyan, 25-7, 25-19, 25-19, on Wednesday night at the Shirk Center. The Firebirds dropped to 15-7 overall and 4-1 in College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin (CCIW) play, while the Titans improved to 21-1 overall and 7-0 in conference action.
Set 1: Illinois Wesleyan took the opening set, 25-7, using a strong offensive performance to build an early lead. The Titans jumped ahead 4-1 and continued to extend their advantage throughout the set. Carthage recorded kills from
Kristina Manojlovic and
Macy Wente, as well as a block from
Hailey Wierzgac, but Illinois Wesleyan maintained control and closed out the set.
Set 2: The Firebirds showed improvement in the second set but fell, 25-19. Carthage opened with a 2-0 lead and remained competitive early, with kills from Manojlovic and
Taylor Baratta helping the Firebirds keep pace. The teams traded points through the early stages before Illinois Wesleyan pulled ahead. Carthage stayed within striking distance and used kills from Wierzgac,
Emma Crow and Manojlovic to cut into the deficit late. The Titans reached set point at 24-17, but Carthage responded with consecutive kills from Manojlovic and
Ava Dettwiler before Illinois Wesleyan closed out the set, 25-19.
Set 3: Illinois Wesleyan secured the sweep with another 25-19 victory in the third set. The Titans built an early 6-1 lead and maintained their advantage through the middle of the set. Carthage received kills from Manojlovic, Dettwiler and Wente as the Firebirds continued to battle. Illinois Wesleyan led 20-11 before Carthage mounted a late push, scoring several points behind kills from Manojlovic, Wierzgac and Wente. The Firebirds pulled within five at 24-19, but the Titans recorded the final point to clinch the match.
Illinois Wesleyan hit .336 as a team and finished with 49 kills, six service aces and three total blocks. Carthage hit .121 and recorded 27 kills, one service ace and two total blocks.
Manojlovic led the Firebirds with 12 kills and five digs. Dettwiler finished with 19 assists, eight digs and three kills, while Wente added five kills. Wierzgac recorded four kills and one block, and Mina Reichert contributed seven digs.
"Took one on the chin tonight," said Head Coach Leanne Ulmer. "We struggled to create enough offense which put a lot of pressure on our defense. The first set started poorly and we never recovered. We switched things up in the 2nd set and did a much better job controlling the first contacts and that helped produce more offense. We got behind in Set 3 but fought back but came up short. They are a very complete team and are playing very well. We will regroup and get ready for a couple of Saturday matches."
Carthage women's volleyball returns to action Saturday, Oct. 24, at the UW-Whitewater tournament in Whitewater, Wis. The Firebirds will face Gustavus Adolphus at 11 a.m. before taking on No. 15 Dubuque at 1 p.m. The Firebirds return to Tarble Arena on Oct. 28 to host Millikin University at 7 p.m. For more information, visit athletics.carthage.edu.
