WARRENSBURG, Mo. – Western State Colorado University women's volleyball team collected its first win of the season in a sweep (25-15, 25-18, 25-22) of the University of Illinois at Springfield Friday in the Peggy Martin Challenge in Warrensburg, Missouri. The Mountaineers fell victim (25-13, 25-11, 25-13) to St. Cloud State in the second match of the day.
 
The Mountaineers (1-2, 0-0 RMAC) jumped into action in the first set against the Prairie Stars (0-1), taking the first four points. Western put the match out of hand when it went on a five point run to take a double-digit lead at 22-12. Setter Allison Walker (Jr., Aurora, Colorado) distributed the ball well, recording seven assists in the set as six different players had kills.
 
In set two, UIS jumped out to a quick 7-3 lead over Western State. Molly Hothan (Jr., Ozawkie, Kansas) turned the momentum back to the Mountaineers when she put down three of her four set kills in a row to tie the game at eight apiece. The teams would battle point-for-point until Kathleen Kasel (Fr.,Golden, Colorado) stopped the Prairie Stars attack with three big blocks and Jordan Eatwell (So., Fruita, Colorado) finished off the seven point Mountaineer run with four of her five set kills.
 
Western State battled closely in the third set, eventually winning on a strong defensive stand to break the tie at 20.
 
Eatwell paved the way for Western State with a team-high 11 kills. She also had four aces and blocks. Hothan added in six kills with a match-high .600 hitting percentage. Walker distributed the ball to six different Mountaineers in the win, totaling for 22 assists.
 
Defensively, Kasel was a force out front with six blocks. In the back row, Amanda Maestas (Jr., Aurora, Colorado) had 18 digs.
 
In game two Eatwell (7) and Castillo (6) combined for 13 kills. Walker added as many assists, with eight players recording kills in the match. Maestas had a dozen digs.
 
Western State completes its play in the Peggy Martin Challenge Saturday against Truman State (9 a.m.) and the University of Mary (1 p.m.). The Mountaineers first home match is Sept. 22 against CSU-Pueblo.