Storm beat Ripon, split first day of UW-Platteville Invite

PLATTEVILLE, Wis. – The Simpson volleyball team put a notch in the win column on Friday night, beating Ripon as part of a split on the first day of the UW-Platteville Invitational.

Simpson handled Ripon 3-0 (25-19, 25-19, 25-17) before falling to the host Pioneers 3-0 (25-23, 25-20, 25-18).

Steph Keller hit .240 with 10 kills and McKaylie Croghan added seven kills for the Storm (1-5) in the day's first match. Simpson hit a season-high .207 in the match while holding Ripon to .000.

Katie Kieffer and MacKenzie McGraw had eight assists apiece and Keller led the way with nine digs.

Against UW-Platteville, Simpson had a golden opportunity to steal momentum early in the match, but couldn't hold on late in the first set.

With the score tied 20-20, a Lauren Martin kill gave Simpson a 21-20 lead. But the Pioneers outscored Simpson 5-2 down the stretch, seizing the set and control of the match.

Martin finished with four kills while McGraw led the way with eight and a .300 attack percentage. Keller had seven kills but Simpson hit only .084 as a team. Martin and Kieffer each had six assists and Kim Rogers paced the defensive effort with 19 digs.

The Storm close out the weekend tournament tomorrow when they face Edgewood (10 a.m.) and St. Norbert (Noon).