MILWAUKEE, Wis. (WLCSports.com) – Wisconsin Lutheran College earned a 3-0 sweep over Illinois Tech in Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference play Saturday at Time of Grace Center on Alumni Day, winning by set scores of 25-21, 25-19, and 27-25.

The Warriors (9-10, 3-1 NACC) controlled the opening set after breaking an early tie with a big 11-2 run. The Scarlet Hawks (12-7, 3-2 NACC) mounted a late run to pull within 19-14, but WLC held off the charge to close out the frame, 25-21.

In the second set, Wisconsin Lutheran pulled away from six early ties with three consecutive points for a 10-7 lead that it would never relinquish. The Warriors led by as many as seven points before taking the second set, 25-19.

The third set featured a back-and-forth battle with seven ties and five lead changes. IIT jumped out to an early 4-0 lead before WLC answered with a 7-1 run to jump in front for the first time. The teams traded momentum until Illinois Tech forced set point at 25-24. Wisconsin Lutheran responded under pressure, fending off the set point with a kill, forcing an attack error, and capitalizing on a set error to take the extended set, 27-25, and finish the sweep.

The Warriors hit .117 as a team with 36 kills. Freshman Alex Emberger (Maple Grove, Minn.) led WLC's attack with eight kills, while senior Faith Smith (Racine, Wis.) added seven. Sophomore Lauren Charbonneau (Menomonee Falls, Wis.) dished out a team-high 16 assists, followed by junior Veronica Tollakson (New Glarus, Wis.) with 12. Tollakson also led the squad from the service line with two aces. Defensively, freshman Elizabeth Ehlke (Cedarburg, Wis.) collected a team-best 16 digs, sophomore Brooke Bartelt (West Bend, Wis.) recorded 12, and freshman Keiveana Petersons (Milwaukee, Wis.) anchored the net with three total blocks (two solo, one assist).

The Scarlet Hawks finished the match hitting .062 with 34 kills. Karla Trautmann Mendez paced IIT with a match-high 13 kills. Rowan Midgette directed the offense with 14 assists. Defensively, Brooke Rifkin led the way with 13 digs, and Lilia Donaldson and Payton Smith each registered two block assists to lead the team at the net.

Wisconsin Lutheran returns to Time of Grace Center on Thursday, October 15, hosting Aurora (19-2, 5-0 NACC) for a 6 p.m. NACC and Dig Pink match.