Milwaukee City Wire

Bella Lipski achieved a career-high 11 kills and hit .474 during Milwaukee’s three-set loss to Central Michigan on Saturday afternoon. The match was part of day two of the 2025 Panther Invitational.

Milwaukee lost the first two sets by identical scores of 25-19. In the third set, the Panthers led 24-21 but could not close out the set, eventually falling 28-26 after Central Michigan fended off five set-point attempts.

Head coach Susie Johnson commented after the match, "This one really hurts today. We have been making progress through the first four matches, but it just hasn't been showing up on the scoreboard yet."

The Panthers recorded a season-best 49 kills in the match. Lipski led with 11 kills, while Natalie Schmitz and Sam Vanda each contributed nine. Annie Eschbach added six kills. Josie Johnson tallied a season-high 21 assists and was one of five Milwaukee players to register a service ace.

Johnson noted about her team’s development, "We are a very young team at the net. Each match continues to help us grow and develop as we get further into the season."

On defense, Kara Erdmann collected 18 digs, and Milica Tomic had nine digs along with 11 assists. The Panthers finished with four blocks; Eschenbach, Lipski, and Josie Noble each recorded two.

Central Michigan produced a balanced attack with 45 kills and a .353 hitting percentage. Abby Olin led her team with 10 kills and five blocks. Izzy Swiercz and Taylor Cripe each added nine kills; Grace Thomas contributed eight. The Chippewas also held advantages in aces (8-5) and blocks (7-4). Molly Beatty and Keelyn Muell combined for 40 assists out of Central Michigan’s total of 43, while Alina Anderson had a match-high 17 digs.

Milwaukee will conclude its participation in the Panther Invitational on Sunday morning against South Alabama at 11:00 a.m. Earlier on Saturday, Iowa State swept South Alabama to finish their weekend at 3-0, while South Alabama dropped to a record of 1-1.