Milwaukee City Wire

The Milwaukee Panthers volleyball team achieved a notable victory against the Oakland Golden Grizzlies in their Horizon League opener on Friday night. The match, held in Rochester, Michigan, saw the Panthers come back from a two-set deficit to win in five sets.

Madi Malone led Milwaukee with 23 kills and a .268 hitting percentage. Bri Geurts also made significant contributions with 12 kills and a .360 hitting percentage. Czhen Beneby added nine kills to start her conference season strong.

The Panthers hit .208 as a team and improved defensively in the last three sets, limiting Oakland to a .037 hitting percentage. This defensive effort helped Milwaukee secure the win after losing the first two sets 25-17 and 25-23. They rallied to win the third set 26-24, then took the fourth set 25-19 before clinching the match with a 15-10 victory in the fifth set.

Natalie Schmitz added 12 kills for Milwaukee, while Lakyn Graves contributed four, and Josie Johnson had two crucial late-match kills. Johnson also led with 28 assists, complemented by Milica Tomic's 22 assists and five service aces.

Defensively, Beneby and Graves each recorded five blocks. Kara Erdmann provided strong support with 26 digs, while Tomic achieved a double-double with 14 digs alongside her assists.

Oakland initially gained an advantage using off-speed attacks to exploit gaps in Milwaukee's defense, amassing 30 kills across the first two sets. Gentry Brown secured eight of her total twelve kills early on for Oakland, while Libby Smith contributed six of her fourteen over these periods.

Milwaukee's comeback began in the third set when they overcame a 14-9 deficit through a decisive run that included key blocks by Beneby and Graves. The set was sealed by consecutive kills from Malone.

Head coach Susie Johnson remarked postgame on the difficulty of reverse sweeps: "Madi [Malone] really helped us flip this match around in that critical third set to get us going."

The Panthers maintained momentum into the fourth set, achieving a lead of up to seven points before concluding it at 25-19 thanks to strategic plays by Johnson and Tomic.

In the final set, Milwaukee quickly established control with an early lead which they expanded through effective serving by Tomic following another pivotal play by Johnson. Despite Oakland's attempt at recovery, Malone's final kill secured Milwaukee's triumph.

For Oakland, Ainsley Guse led defensively with nine blocks while Emily Wichmann tallied 31 digs. Rachel Rossman recorded a double-double comprising of both assists (31) and digs (12).

The teams are scheduled for another match on Saturday afternoon at Oakland’s Athletics Center O'Rena. The game will be available for streaming on ESPN+ and live stats can be accessed via MKEPanthers.com.