NAPERVILLE, Ill. – Carroll University women's volleyball opened CCIW play with a hard-fought five-set match against North Central College, ultimately falling 3-2 (15-25, 25-23, 10-25, 25-23, 9-15) Wednesday night at Gregory Arena.

The Pioneers (5-5, 0-1 CCIW) showed resilience throughout the match, responding to early setbacks with determination and grit. After dropping the first set, Carroll bounced back with a strong second set win, then forced a fifth set with a clutch performance in the fourth. The match featured 20 tie scores and 8 lead changes, highlighting the competitive nature of the contest.

Bronwyn Rowse led the offense with 16 kills on 42 attempts, hitting .238. Audrey Rosenbaum added 11 kills and three block assists, while Kylie Wittnebel and Brooklyn Johnson combined for seven blocks at the net. Payton Depies paced the offense with 29 assists and contributed seven digs.

Defensively, Maggie McGough anchored the back row with 15 digs. Samantha Miserendino added seven digs, and Ashley Miller chipped in with one. Carroll totaled 47 digs and 14 block assists as a team, showing strong defensive effort against a powerful North Central attack.

Carroll hit .203 as a team and kept pace with North Central in two of the five sets, including a narrow 25-23 win in the fourth. Despite the loss, the Pioneers demonstrated poise and fight, pushing one of the conference's top teams to the brink.

The team returns to action this weekend, looking to build on the energy and execution displayed in Naperville as they continue head to Stevens Point, WI for the UW-Stevens Point Triangular as they take on UW-River Falls and UW-Stevens Point this Saturday at 11am and 1pm, respectively.