Elmhurst, Ill. -- Overconfidence, taking their eye off the ball, simply outplayed. Whatever the reason, the bottom line is that Wheaton volleyball looked second-best for the first time in conference play this season as they were swept by Elmhurst on Friday night. The loss drops the Thunder to 5-1 in CCIW action and puts their chances of securing their first regular season title since 1993 in question.

The match began with an Elmhurst service error, but this proved to be one of the few mistakes the Bluejays would make all evening, as the hosts racked up eight aces and 38 kills on the night to stamp an emphatic 3-0 upset. The opening set was a back-and-forth affair, but Elmhurst were able to keep Wheaton at arm's length and the Thunder never managed to tie it back up after falling behind early. The Bluejays built a 24-19 lead at the end of the game, and looked set to cruise through to the second, but Wheaton rattled off three straight points to build some confidence, despite eventually falling 25-22.

The Thunder began the second set with a 3-1 lead of their own following two service errors by their opponents and a successful Audrey Gerze attack. But the Bluejays responded by taking a 5-4 lead, and from that point on, the second set seemed destined to follow the same script as the first. A kill from Emerson Traweek and an Elmhurst attack error helped Wheaton tie the game at 11 apiece, but the home side regrouped and tallied an astonishing ten consecutive points to blow the set wide open. Unsurprisingly, this setback proved too much for the top side in the CCIW to come back from, and Elmhurst took the second set by a score of 25-15.

Wheaton had their best run of play at the beginning of the third set, winning seven of the first 12 points and slowly gaining a foothold in the match. But consistency was Wheaton's fatal flaw on Friday, and Elmhurst always threatened to seize the momentum on their senior night. Once again, the middle of the set proved to be the Thunder's undoing, as the Bluejays went on two four-point runs to take a 13-9 lead. Wheaton answered back with a run of their own to tie the set at 13, and managed to hold on until the scoreboard showed 19 points for both teams. But Elmhurst took six of the next eight points to close out the surprise sweep in comprehensive fashion.

On a night of few positives for Wheaton, Kaylee Byerly stood out, picking up a season-high five kills and registering a .400 hitting percentage. Briley Brogan chipped in with five of her own, and Traweek collected four kills in a match for the first time in her young collegiate career. Colleen Smith predictably led the way for Wheaton in kills with seven to her name, but Elmhurst largely prevented the reigning CCIW offensive player of the week from exerting her influence on proceedings. Mia Staub and Marlee Anderson had 12 and 11 assists tonight, respectively, and Allie High added to her ever-expanding dig count with 14 across the three sets. As a team, the Thunder posted an unusually low hitting percentage of just .089 and were also limited to only two service aces, eight block assists, and zero solo blocks on the night.

Next up for the volleyball team is a crucial match at Carthage on Wednesday, October 20th. With both teams sitting at 5-1 in conference play, the winners will be favored to collect the regular season title and host the conference tournament semifinals and final in the first week of November.