Unfortunately for the Marquette volleyball team the bus ride home lasted only a few short miles, for the Golden Eagles could have reveled in their victory over Wisconsin-Milwaukee for hours.
Marquette defeated its cross-town rival Tuesday night with a 3-1 (30-25, 25-30, 30-28, 30-24) victory over the Panthers at the Klotsche Center. The Golden Eagles won their fourth straight match and improved to 14-10 this season behind senior Theresa Coughlin's 28 kills.
The victory ended the Panthers' 10-match winning streak that started on Sept. 30. UWM dropped to 17-8 on the season.
"It was nice to get the win because it's a great rivalry," said head coach Pati Rolf.
An early overpowering attack led Marquette to five straight points and carried the Golden Eagles to a game-one victory. Marquette's lead increased to seven before the Panthers stormed back to trail by just 25-24. After a Golden Eagle timeout, Marquette finished off the 30-25 win.
"The team played well the first game, but I was off," said Coughlin, despite her eight kills in the opening game.
A mid-game run carried the Panthers to a 30-25 win in the second game. The game went back and forth in the early going, until UWM took a 17-11 lead. Marquette would come back to within two at 21-19 and then again at 26-24 but could not get any closer.
"We let up a bit after the first game," junior Jamie Mueller said. "At the break, we talked about playing our game and how we had to bring it to the floor."
A tight battle highlighted the third game, which ended with Marquette on top 30-28. Coughlin dominated the net early, and the Golden Eagles took advantage of open spots down the stretch in the closest game of the match that featured 11 ties and seven lead changes.
"It was a crazy, crazy game," said Rolf. "Balls were flying everywhere."
Following a pep talk from Rolf with Marquette leading 26-24, an inspired Mueller played a big role in completing the third game victory.
"At that point in the game, she encouraged me," Mueller said. "It was a sort of motivation."
In the early stages of the fourth and final game, neither team seized momentum, and there were six lead changes. However, Marquette never relinquished the lead after taking an 18-17 advantage. The Golden Eagles improved as the game progressed and won 30-24.
"That's something that got started in the last few matches," Rolf said of momentum contributing to the team's strength down the stretch. "They gave us a few points toward the end with errors."
The victory was extra sweet for Coughlin, whose 28 kills were one shy of her single-match career high.
"It felt good for me because my sister went (to UWM), so I saw the (UWM) coaches when I was in high school," she said.
Mueller led the team with 26 digs to go along with 17 kills. Sophomore Kimberley Todd, coming off Big East Player of the Week honors, recorded 15 kills and 14 digs. Senior Caitie O'Brien also registered 14 digs.
The Golden Eagles will host Seton Hall (12-14, 2-8) Friday at the Al McGuire Center.
"Seton Hall's a huge game for us, because we haven't secured our place in the Big East tourney," Rolf said. "Seedings are so important with Notre Dame and Louisville in the conference."
Notre Dame and Louisville are currently ranked 5th and 7th, respectively, in the nation. The conference tournament will be held in Louisville, Ky., Nov. 18-20.