ELSAH, Ill. – The Webster University women's volleyball team was back in action this morning when they traveled to Elsah, Illinois, to compete in the Principia (Ill.) College Tri-Match. The Gorloks played two matches on the day as they defeated Principia (Ill.) College in three sets (25-14, 25-12, 25-6) and then fell to Westminster (Mo.) College in five sets (22-25, 25-20, 24-26, 25-21, 13-15). The Gorloks improve to 8-6 on the season and 3-3 in SLIAC play.

In their first match of the day, the Gorloks posted 29 kills on 79 attacks for a .266 attacking percentage. They added 10 service aces, four blocks, 22 assists, and 47 digs. The Panthers posted 12 kills and a -.102 attacking percentage.

Webster came out in the first set and jumped out to an early 13-5 lead. They continued to play well as the set progressed and pushed their lead to 22-7. The Gorloks were able to pick up the final points of the set and took a 1-0 lead in the match.

The Gorloks carried over their momentum into the second set as they jumped out to a 15-8 lead. Webster pushed their lead to as many as 14 and closed out the Panthers down the stretch to solidify the win.
In the third set, Webster started the game on a 21-5 run. They picked up the final points of the set and solidified the sweep.

Julia Frey led the attack for Webster as she finished with a match high six kills. In addition, Jordan Anderson finished with a team high six assists, Taylor Thompson recorded a match high 15 digs, and Ellie Biedenstein added 11 digs.

In their second match of the day, the Gorloks finished with 54 kills on 211 attacks for a .104 attacking percentage. They added one service ace, six blocks, 39 assists, and 99 digs. The Blue Jays finished with 42 kills on 216 attacks for a .056 attacking percentage.

After dropping the first set, the Gorloks came out in the second set and jumped out to a 13-2 lead. The Blue Jays battled back and cut the score to three late in the set, but the Golroks were able to pick up the final points on the game to tie the match at one.

Webster fell in a closely contested third set but bounced back in the fourth as they jumped out to a quick 5-2 lead. The Blue Jays tied the score at five and the teams went back and forth for most of the game. With the score tied at 17, Webster went on an 8-4 run to close out the set and tie the match at two.

Webster struggled to start the fifth as they found themselves down 9-2 early. They battled back and tied the score at 11, but the Blue Jays ended the set on a 4-2 run to solidify the match.

Lauren Borik and Kaylee Portell led the attack for Webster as Borik finished with 10 kills and 16 digs while Portell added 10 kills. Ellie Biedenstein led the offense for Webster as she recorded a team high 15 assists. Defensively, Cassie Gray finished with a team high 20 digs while Ellie Biedenstein added 13 digs and Madison Katz recorded 12.

The Gorloks will return to court on Wednesday, October 5^th when they travel down Big Bend to take on the Fontbonne (Mo.) University Griffins for a SLIAC matchup. The game is set to start at 7 p.m.