WHITEWATER, Wis. — The Massey Ratings gave UW-Stout a zero percent chance to defeat eighth-ranked UW-Whitewater. The Blue Devils hadn't beaten the Warhawks since Oct. 8, 1994 — a span of 40 straight matches over 31 years. But on Friday night at Kris Russell Arena, none of that mattered.
UW-Stout stunned the nationally ranked powerhouse with a five-set thriller, winning 18-25, 25-21, 15-25, 25-16, 15-13 to secure one of the program's most historic victories.
Stout (16-7, 2-3 WIAC) showed resilience throughout the back-and-forth battle, jumping out to early leads in all five sets and delivering clutch plays late when history seemed poised to repeat itself. After Whitewater (21-4, 2-3 WIAC) took the opening set 25-18, the Blue Devils responded in the second. With the frame tied 17-17, four Warhawk attack errors helped push Stout ahead 21-17. Whitewater rallied to tie it at 23-23, but a kill by
Brooke McCune followed by a block from
Brynn Hessel sealed the equalizer, 25-21.
The Warhawks regained control with a 25-15 win in the third set, but Stout refused to fade. In the fourth, the Blue Devils led throughout, building a double-digit advantage before
Kailey Kline delivered back-to-back service aces to close out a 25-16 victory and force a decisive fifth set.
Stout surged ahead 3-0 in the final frame behind two early kills and a block from
Emma Barton. Whitewater tied the set twice at 4-4 and 7-7 as both teams traded pressure points. With the set knotted at 9-9,
Kyra Giffen hammered down two kills to spark Stout's final push. Up 14-11, the Blue Devils saw the Warhawks pull within one — but Barton rose again. Her 16th kill of the night, assisted by
Lainey Todd, delivered the long-awaited match winner and ignited a celebration that was three decades in the making.
Barton led all players with 16 kills (.343) and nine blocks, while Giffen added 11 kills. McCune chipped in 10 kills and nine digs, and
Sloan Horgan contributed seven blocks and six kills. Todd posted a 26-assist, 10-dig double-double, and
Nadia Marchionda handed out 18 assists with six digs. Kline anchored the defense with 24 digs and two service aces.
The win moves the Blue Devils into a three-way tie for fourth place in the tight WIAC Playoff race with just two conference games left on the slate.
Stout will play Augustana College (Ill.) tomorrow Saturday, Oct. 25 at 10 a.m. at Kris Russell Arena in Whitewater, Wis.
