MOUNT PLEASANT, Mich. – Eastern Illinois volleyball lost both matches to open the Central Michigan Chippewa Invitational. EIU fell 3-0 to Central Michigan and 3-0 to UIC.  EIU closes out the tournament on Saturday facing North Dakota State at 12 p.m.
Central Michigan 3, Eastern Illinois 0
In the opener Central Michigan beat EIU, 3-0 (25-20, 25-21, 25-21).
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The first set for the Panthers started out slow as Central Michigan got out to a 6-1 lead. After that EIU tried to get there footing but never really could. CMU went on to win the set.
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In the second set the Panthers kept it close until 6-6 when EIU pulled ahead to 12-7. The Chippewa's had their own run that put them back on top of the Panthers to win the second set.
In the third set the Panthers got out to an early three point lead led by
Ireland Hieb. CMU answered with a nice run. The Panthers could never get back into a rhythm after that allowing the Chippewas to sweep the match.
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The Panthers were led by Hieb with eight kills and one block.
Laurel Bailey and Kiley Michael both had seven kills. The defense was led by
Madison Cunningham with 15 digs.
Kalina Smith led CMU in kills with 13. For the defense, Megan Kern led the team in digs with 15.
UIC 3, EIU 0
UIC beat EIU 3-0 in the final match of the day for the Panthers (25-22, 25-15, 25-20).
In the first set the Panthers got off to a fast start taking a 4-0 lead. UIC came back and took the lead at 13-12. The Flames then went on a 3-0 run late in the first set to jump on top 1-0 in the match.
In the second set both teams were traded attacks until UIC used a 4-0 run to build a 13-9 lead. The Flames kept their foot on the pedal winning the second set by 10 points.
In the third set, EIU went on a 3-0 run to build a 10-7 lead. Â EIU would extend its lead to 15-10 in the match. UIC rallied late in the match scoring 15 of the last 20 points in the match.
The Panthers were led by
Maggie Runge with seven kills and two blocks.
Bailey Chandler led the team in assists with 22. On the defensive side,
Laurel Bailey led the team in blocks with five.
The Flames were led by Paola Santiago with 11 kills and Marija Borcic with 18 assists.
