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Scoreboard

Dunnam hit
Heather Taylor
1
IWU IWU 1-13 (1-2 CCIW)
3
Winner Carroll University CARROLL 11-8 (1-2 CCIW)
IWU IWU
1-13 (1-2 CCIW)
1
Final
3
Carroll University CARROLL
11-8 (1-2 CCIW)
Winner
Set Scores
Team 1 2 3 4 F
IWU IWU 25 14 23 20 (1)
Carroll University CARROLL 21 25 25 25 (3)

Game Recap: Women's Volleyball | | By Jeff Hagenau

Pios showcase resilience in statement-making first conference victory

Carroll defeats Illinois Wesleyan for first time since rejoining CCIW in 2016

WAUKESHA, Wis. - With a victory hanging in the balance, Erika Dunnam stepped up to the pressure-packed challenge and delivered the memorable knock-out punch.
Dunnam, a 6-foot-2 senior outside hitter from Shawano, Wis., finished with 10 kills and three blocks as the Carroll University women's volleyball team defeated fierce rival and defending league champion Illinois Wesleyan University 21-25, 25-14, 25-23, 25-20 in a College Conference of Illinois-Wisconsin dual meet at Van Male Field House on Wednesday night.
It was the first conference victory of the season for Carroll, which improved to 1-2 in the highly contested league standings and 11-8 overall.
The victory took on added significance as it was the program's first conference win over the Titans since re-joining the CCIW in 2016.
On the energized final point of the match, Dunnam established good position on the right side, took advantage of a perfectly placed pass from senior setter Emma Przeslicke (Evergreen Park, Ill.), timed her leap and finished with a ferocious right-handed cross-court spike to put an exclamation point on an emotional, home-court victory. 
"It was an awesome set, there wasn't a block and it felt really good to finish the job," said a smiling Dunnam, of the explosive, fist-pumping, match-clinching final point. "At that moment, I wanted to slam it so everything lined up perfectly. After first making contact, there wasn't a doubt in my mind that we were going to win the match. When the ball hit the floor, everyone started cheering and it was cool to see everything come together. It was a complete-team victory from beginning to end.
Being a senior, it was very special getting our first conference win of the year and should really give us momentum as we move ahead. When we trailed in the third set, there was some pressure so we really wanted to focus on playing our style of game and that's when good things began to happen. Looking back, it was one of the biggest victories of my career."
Senior outside hitter Kylie Mueller (Fox Lake, Ill.) contributed 10 kills and four blocks with junior outside hitter Sam Penzkowski (Racine, Wis.) following with nine kills, 16 digs, a service ace and an assist for Carroll, which overcame an early one-set deficit.
With the match tied 1-1 and trailing 23-20 in the critical third set, Carroll showcased its resilience, balance and focus by responding to the tension-filled situation with a key, momentum-shifting 5-0 run - powered on two kills each from Dunnam and Penzkowski.
"At that point in the match, we knew it was now or never," said the 5-foot-8 Penzkowski, of the inspired third-set comeback. "I really enjoy being put in pressure situations where you're needed to step up and score a key point to lead a rally to continue the match. So it was very exciting to be able to finish on a few big plays and contribute to the team's success.
Penzkowski delivered a thunderous cross-court spike from the left side to reclaim a 24-23 lead for the Pioneers during the crucial third-set rally.
"After struggling over the course of the past few weeks during our last two conference matches, we really came together and played as a team," Penzkowski said. "We switched some things around in practice, tried to have fun and came out ready to win tonight. Coming into the season, they were picked to finish second in the conference and we were fourth (referring to the CCIW preseason coaches poll) so we wanted to avenge last year's loss and play up to our potential. It was a huge victory and will only help our confidence as we move forward."
The success carried over into the match-clinching fourth set as Carroll built a 22-20 lead to eventually close the night out with authority on aggressive, back-to-back kills from Mueller and junior middle blocker Rachel Noonan (Crystal Lake, Ill.) to set the stage for Dunnam's final point.
Noonan had six kills and six blocks with senior outside hitter Sydney Wilkins (Portage, Ind.) adding four kills.
Freshman defensive specialist Emily Konop (Oregon, Wis.) collected 20 digs and utilized an efficient running, one-handed jump serve to land four aces for Carroll, which generated 14 kills to fuel a .333 hitting percentage in the pivotal, momentum-shifting third set. Senior setter Jennilyn Joy Cave (Bolingbrook, Ill.) had 11 assists with an ace. Przeslicke added 11 digs and 23 assists.
Carroll head coach Becca Saal, in her 10th season at the helm, was proud of her team's tenacious, resilient performance.
"It was the first time we've beaten Illinois Wesleyan during my time as coach (and since re-joining the CCIW) but more importantly it was our first conference victory of the season which is always the hardest," said Saal, who guided the Pioneers to the prestigious CCIW Tournament last year. "Throughout the night, we stuck to the game plan, played hard, served tough and communicated well on the court so I was very happy.
"We've struggled in some matches so we really talked a lot about being good teammates on the court and maintaining communication at every level on the floor. That played an important role in our success tonight. We also did a nice job of staying safe when we needed to stay safe and being aggressive when the time arrived. Over the course of the match, we had a lot of athletes step up, showcased our balanced attack and proved once again that we're multi-dimensional and anyone can step up at any time. That selfless approach paid off in a big way down the stretch.
"Being a victory against a tough conference team, this will only boost our confidence heading into the next portion of the schedule."
Junior outside hitter Jessica McCall registered a meet-high 17 kills for Illinois Wesleyan, which dropped to 1-2 in conference and 1-13 overall.
Stay up to date on Carroll women's volleyball this season by going online to www.gopios.com, or by following the Pioneers on Facebook (Carroll University Athletics), Twitter (@pio_athletics), and Instagram (@pio_athletics).
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