Volleyball splits final day of tournament play

DECATUR, Ill. - The Simpson volleyball team closed play at the Linda Slagell Dig for the Cure Tournament on Saturday, beating Blackburn in three sets before losing to host and No. 18 Millikin 3-0.

The Storm (12-16) closed the weekend 1-3 after four-set losses to Wisconsin-Platteville and Wheaton (Ill.) on Friday.

Jacqueline Luth earned a spot on the all-tournament team after compiling 20 kills, five aces and a team-high six blocks over the weekend. Tabitha Blaser led the team with 43 kills and Elisa Wildy finished with 28 kills and a team-best .260 hitting percentage.

Milestone Watch

• With 86 assists over the weekend, Katie Kieffer increased her career total to 2,996. The junior is within reaching distance of becoming the program's seventh player to reach 3,000 career assists.
• Blaser's weekend performance leaves her with 972 career kills. Also a junior, she needs 28 kills over the next five guaranteed matches to become the 15th player in Simpson history to record 1,000 kills.

Simpson 3, Blackburn 0 (25-12, 25-9, 25-8)

• Wildy was unstoppable against Blackburn, tallying 11 kills in 15 attempts with just one error. Her .667 hitting percentage is tied for the 10th-best by a Simpson player in a single match (15-19 attempts with at least 10 kills). Luth hit .500 with seven kills while Blaser and Noreen Morrow had five kills apiece as the Storm rolled.

18 Millikin 3, Simpson 0 (25-19, 25-18, 25-22)

• Despite Blaser's team-high 17 kills, the host Big Blue were too much for the Storm. Blaser hit .400 and Kieffer finished with 23 assists, but Audrey Krajec and Alora Goddey led a Millikin attack that hit .390 as a team. Krajec had 19 kills and Goodey had 11.

Up Next

• Simpson goes to rival Central on Tuesday, Oct. 28 for the final Iowa Conference match of the season. The Dutch (16-8, 3-3) are already assured a spot in the conference tournament, but at 2-4, Simpson's future is unclear. A number of scenarios exist, but a Storm win all-but locks up a tournament berth.