(GREEN BAY ATHLETICS) GREEN BAY – The Green Bay volleyball team had a dominant home-opening win over the Western Illinois Leathernecks Friday night, taking the three sets 25-16, 25-19, and 25-13. The non-conference victory improved Green Bay’s overall record to 6-4 on the season. Friday night’s match marked the return to the Kress for Kendall Schara, who hadn’t played in the Kress Center since 2024.
Diane Pichelman finished with eight kills on the day to lead the Phoenix attack while finishing with a hitting percentage of .467. Olivia Neumann also had eight kills. GB got 11 digs from Kennedy Schmitz, along with five blocks from Neumann and five more from Kirsten Fish to lead them defensively.
“I’m so pumped. The atmosphere in the Kress today was incredible, our crowd was amazing, and we had so many student-athletes there supporting Kendall,” said head coach Abbey Sutherland. “It honestly felt like a party for her, and she deserves every second of that. To think that a year ago she was coming to our match just to be there while she was still in treatment, and today she’s on the floor playing Division I volleyball and in remission—that’s pretty special.
Sutherland continued, “On the volleyball side, we are really taking defense seriously and understanding that it can be a huge part of how we’re successful. Liv was a force at the net defensively, Fish was a force on the block, and Diane continues to be such a consistent offensive threat for us. She executed in so many ways today, and for a middle, she was really good at the service line. It was a total team effort. I loved our grittiness, but more than anything, I loved how present we were. We stayed in it, competed together, and just kept making plays.”
HOW IT HAPPENED
SET 1 | The Phoenix grabbed control of the set-one lead at 5-4 and held the lead the rest of the way to win 25-16. Green Bay led by as many as 10 points at 24-14 before finishing off the set, collecting 16 kills in the process. The Phoenix got a solid defensive performance from a front row that blocked four Western Illinois attacks in the set.
SET 2 | Green Bay carried momentum from a set-one win by securing a 25-19 victory in set number two. The Phoenix took the set powered by a solid showing on the attacking side. Green Bay put together a .345 attack percentage with 12 kills in the set win.
SET 3 | Green Bay finished off the match in a 3-0 sweep after winning the third set in dominant fashion. The Phoenix took the first point and never looked back, securing a 25-13 victory. The Green Bay offense got a boost from three aces in the frame.
GAME NOTES
» Diane Pichelman had a match-high three aces in the win.
» Alexa Hernandez finished with 28 assists on the night.
» GB outhit WIU .286 to .063.
» The Phoenix is now on a four-match win streak.
COMING UP
Green Bay will be back in action Saturday against Western Illinois once again. The Phoenix will look to make it five straight tomorrow before opening Horizon League play on Friday, Sept. 25 against Oakland at 5 p.m.
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