Wheaton, Ill. – The Wheaton College volleyball team opened up its inaugural Marilyn Scribner Invitational on Friday with a pair of victories. Wheaton's first win was a 3-0 (25-21, 25-19, 25-20) conference victory against North Central. The Thunder closed out Friday night's action with a 3-0 (25-18, 25-20, 25-15) victory against St. Mary's (Ind.).

The Thunder swept through North Central in the three-set victory to open the tournament. Ellie Brown and Colleen Smith each recorded a team-high 11 kills to lead the Thunder attack. Deborah Smith and Audrey Gerze each tallied seven kills and Kaylee Byerlee added six. Senior Alecia Funk led the hosts with 22 assists and Marlee Anderson added 17. Freshman Allie High anchored Wheaton with a team-high 21 digs and Byerlee registered five total blocks.

Colleen Smith again led the Thunder with 10 kills and she had a team-high five service aces. Gerze added seven kills. Brown, Deborah Smith and Emma Sweatman each tallied six kills in Wheaton's well-rounded effort. Funk distributed 16 assists and Marlee Anderson had 12. High again led the Thunder with 15 digs and Gerze contributed 11 digs. Brown had six total blocks in the win and Deborah Smith registered four as Wheaton tallied eight team blocks in the match.

The Thunder close out the tournament on Saturday at 2:00 p.m. against Dominican.