Alverno College

MILWAUKEE – It was another historic night inside the Reiman Gymnasium on Friday evening, as the Alverno volleyball team broke the program record for kills in a match with 66, eclipsing the previous mark of 60 as the Inferno fell in five sets to Beloit, 3-2.
 
The 66 total kills set on Friday was the most for the Inferno since the previous program record was set in 2014, when the Inferno rattled off 60 kills in a five-set loss to Marian in Fond du Lac on October 4 of that season.
 
In addition to the team mark of 66 kills, freshman Rolin West notched a program-record 28 kills passing the mark set by Emily Ortner of 27, which was set back during the 2013 season, also against Marian. With her 28 kills, West now moves into sole possession of first place on the single-match kills list.
 
Despite the team and individual accomplishments, the Inferno fell in five sets. Alverno won the opening set 25-16 before Beloit took a 2-1 lead heading into the fourth set. In a period that needed extra serves, the Inferno pulled out the fourth set 29-27 to force the match to a fifth and deciding set. Ultimately it was the Buccaneers to pull out the win with a 15-10 fifth set victory.
 
West led the team with a .354 hitting percentage and also led the team with 22 digs on the night. Sophomore Skylar Kumprey was second on the team with 16 kills and also chipped in with a .220 hitting percentage and added 10 digs. Classmate Jenna Flayter tallied seven kills and hit .227 to go along with three blocks on the night to add to her 18 digs over the five-set marathon.
 
Senior Alex McMath led Alverno with 30 kills and had 15 digs as she connected on six kills and was tied with West for the team lead with three aces apiece. Sophomore Selena Upshur connected on five kills and had a pair of assists while chipping in defensively with 15 digs. Freshman Izzy Gianniou picked up four kills on her own and was second to McMath with 21 assists, while finishing second on the team with 18 digs.
 
Alverno as a team, led by McMath and Gianniou picked up 57 assists, one shy of the program record. The team also combined for 98 digs, which was the fifth highest team total in program history, and most since the 2018 season, when Alverno registered 104 digs against Mount Mary. The program record for digs is 120 from the 2003 season.
 
Alverno (1-1, 0-0 NACC) will be back in action on Saturday afternoon for a 3 p.m. start against Beloit, this time at the Flood Arena in South Central Wisconsin.