Red Devils Claim Back-to-Back Five-Set Wins

EUREKA, Ill. – The Eureka women's volleyball team claimed a home sweep in thrilling fashion on Saturday, securing two five-set victories over Rockford and Beloit. With the wins, Eureka improved to 2-4 on the season.

Game 1: Eureka 3, Rockford 2

The Red Devils (2-4) battled through a tough matchup with Rockford (1-3), eventually claiming a 3-2 victory with set scores of 24-26, 25-20, 25-19, 19-25, 15-11.

The match started with a tight first set that saw Eureka take an early 2-0 lead, but Rockford quickly responded with a 5-1 run to take control. Despite a late comeback effort by the Red Devils, including a kill by Brooklyn Shell (Evansville, Ind./Mount Vernon) to tie the set at 24-24, Rockford took the set with a kill from Kennedy Bryant and a service ace by Isabella Valdes.

Eureka regained its footing in the second set, as a service ace by Lexi Liaromatis (Wilmington, Ill./Wilmington) helped spark an early 4-1 lead. The Red Devils maintained control, with contributions from Kaitlyn Robinson (Macomb, Ill./Macomb) and Maleaha Nagel (Abingdon, Ill./Abingdon-Avon), and closed out the set 25-20 after a service error by Rockford.

The third set saw Eureka jump out to an early lead, including two service aces by Alyssa Company (Lincoln, Ill./Lincoln Community), who finished the match with 12 kills, five blocks, and 21 digs. With kills from Nagel and Robinson, Eureka surged ahead and never looked back, winning the set 25-19.

Rockford fought back in the fourth set, capitalizing on a string of Eureka errors to force a fifth set, winning 25-19.

In the decisive fifth set, Eureka came out strong, surging to a 4-1 lead, thanks in part to a service ace from Liaromatis. Rockford briefly closed the gap, but the Red Devils held strong, with kills from Frannie Heckman (Benson, Ill./Roanoke-Benson) and a pair of key blocks from Company. Eureka won the set 15-11 to secure the victory.

Liaromatis recorded a career-high with 22 digs in the match, while Robinson recorded 18 assists, and Bre Dixon (Newark, Ill./Newark Community) contributed 22 assists and 17 digs in the win.

Game 2: Eureka 3, Beloit 2

Eureka's second match of the day proved just as thrilling as the first, as they battled Beloit (2-3) to secure a 3-2 win with set scores of 18-25, 25-21, 25-11, 19-25, 15-9.

Beloit won the first set 25-18, taking advantage of a 6-0 run fueled by errors from Eureka and strong serving from Lizzie Paschal. The Red Devils responded in the second set with a 7-0 run, capped by a service ace from Shell, to take a 25-21 set win and even the match at 1-1.

In the third set, Eureka was unstoppable, hitting at an impressive .423 clip and rolling to a 25-11 victory. Company played a key role in the set with several kills and a block, while Cloee O'Donoghue (Emden, Ill./Hartsburg-Emden) contributed a pair of service aces to help seal the win.

Beloit bounced back in the fourth set, capitalizing on Eureka's errors and winning 25-19 to force a deciding fifth set.

In the fifth set, Eureka raced to a 7-0 lead, thanks to attack errors from Beloit and two service aces from Liaromatis. The Red Devils weathered a late comeback attempt from Beloit and sealed the win with another kill from Company, clinching the set 15-9.

Company led the Red Devils with 13 kills and 16 digs. Liaromatis added 21 digs and three service aces, while Robinson finished with 15 assists and a perfect hitting percentage, converting all three of her attempts into kills.

Up Next

Eureka will look to continue its momentum on Tuesday, when they host Knox at 6:00 p.m.