Wheaton, Ill. - The Thunder volleyball team closed out the 2015 Wheaton Invitational on Saturday with a pair of matches. UW-Eau Claire rallied to defeat Wheaton 3-1 in the opening session and the Thunder closed out the tournament with a 3-1 victory against Saint Mary's College (Ind.). Thunder junior Shelby Knowles earned an All-Tournament nod with a strong performance this weekend.

The UW-Eau Claire Bluegolds topped the Thunder 3-1 in the opening session on Saturday. Wheaton won first set 25-23 and the guest won the second set 26-24. The Blugolds closed out the match with a 28-26 win in the third set and a 25-22 victory in the fourth set.

Shelby Knowles had a team-high 15 kills in the match against UW-Eau Claire and she also contributed 13 digs. Freshman Sydney Vischer tallied 13 kills with 14 digs and three service aces. Hannah Japp registered six kills in the matchup. Ashley Torok distributed 21 assists in the match and Kelly Thornton had 19. Senior Kelli Manning had 14 digs and freshman Jessica Bosse registered 10.

Wheaton emerged with a 25-23 victory in the first set against Saint Mary's and the Belles earned a 25-16 victory in the second set. The Thunder won the third and fourth sets by identical 25-16 scores to earn the 3-1 win.

Knowles had a match-best 23 kills and was second on the Thunder with 19 digs in the win against Saint Mary's Vischer tallied 10 kills and Katie Rohrer added nine kills. Torok distributed 22 assists and Kelly Thornton had 18 assists. Manning led Wheaton's defense with 24 digs and Rohrer contributed four assisted blocks.

Wheaton (7-12, 0-1 CCIW) will return to conference play on Tuesday as the Thunder visit Illinois Wesleyan in a CCIW matchup at 7:00 p.m.
 
2015 WHEATON INVITATIONAL ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM
Ellen Drewry, UW-Stevens Point
Shelby Knowles, Wheaton College
Katrina Raskie, UW-Eau Claire
Anna Runge, University of Dubuque
Jenna Smith, UW-Eau Claire
McKenzie Todd, Saint Mary's College (Ind.)
Amanda Walker, North Central College