Wheaton College Athletics

Waukesha, Wis. - The Wheaton volleyball team earned a 3-0 victory at Carroll University on Tuesday night at the Pioneers' Van Male Fieldhouse. The Thunder won each of the three sets by identical scores of 25-22.

Katie Rohrer (PICTURED LEFT), Madeline Moore and Kelly Thornton each tallied eight kills in the win for the Thunder. Emily Potts added six kills for the guests. Thornton led the Thunder with 25 assists and Moore had a team-high nine digs. Audrey Irwin and Ellie Brown each had a team-high three total blocks. Thornton compiled a match-best .429 attack percentage in the match.

Wheaton scored the first four points in the opening set and pulled out to an 8-6 lead. The Pioneers responded with four consecutive points to take a 10-8 lead over the Thunder. The Thunder then countered with a 7-1 run to re-take the lead with a 15-11 edge. The guests never trailed after the brief 10-8 deficit. The largest lead of the set for the Thunder was a seven-point bulge at 20-13 and the guests earned the 25-22 lead. The Thunder had a match-high 15 kills in the opening set. Rohrer led the Thunder with five kills in the set. 

The Thunder scored the first point of the second set, however, the Pioneers responded with a 5-1 run to take a 5-2 lead. Carroll continued to maintain a lead for the majority of the set. The Pioneers led 20-17 when Moore registered a kill to cut the hosts' lead to 20-18. Thornton tallied kills on each of the next two points to tie the set at 20-20. Three-consecutive Carroll errors extended Wheaton's lead to 23-20 to cap a 6-0 run for the Thunder. Wheaton led 23-22 when a kill by Brown extended the Thunder lead to 24-22 and a kill by Potts gave Wheaton the set 25-22. Thornton registered five of Wheaton's 14 kills in the set.

Wheaton jumped out to a 6-3 lead in the third set and continued to hold on to a narrow lead throughout much of the set. The Thunder led 17-15, when the Pioneers responded with four-consecutive points to take a 19-17 lead. The Thunder countered with a 4-1 run to take a 21-20 lead. Two of Wheaton's key points in the run came on kills by Moore to turn a 20-19 Carroll lead into a 21-20 lead for the Thunder. The set was tied at 22-22 when a kill by Brown gave the Thunder a 23-22 lead and Wheaton a block by Brown and Irwin (BOTH PICTURED AT RIGHT) extended the Thunder lead to 24-22. An error by the Pioneers gave Wheaton the 25-22 win in the set and the 3-0 victory in the match. 

Wheaton is off until October 18 when the Thunder travels to Illinois Wesleyan for a CCIW matchup with the Titans.