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For the second straight year, seventh-seeded UW-Platteville stunned second-seeded UW-Oshkosh in the first round of the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference playoffs.
The Pioneers beat the Titans, ranked ninth in the country, 23-30, 30-25, 30-26, 30-25 to advance to Friday and Saturday's final four.
UWP, which twice lost to UW-Oshkosh 3-0 during the regular season, improved to 23-11, while the Titans fell to 31-5.
Coach Deb Schulman's team hit a sizzling .273 in the four games, led by Lisa Bell, with 17 kills and just two hitting errors, and Rachel Chapman, with 15 kills and 15 digs. Melissa Hillebrand added 11 kills, while Stephanie Tronnes added eight kills. Kelly Laschinger had 54 assists, while Emily Walker had 17 digs and Rochelle Ripp 16. Abby Carey came up big on the serve with four aces.
The Pioneers will face third-seeded UW-Eau Claire Friday at 5 p.m. at UW-Whitewater, while the host and top-seeded Warhawks play UW-La Crosse at 7 p.m.
The championship is set for Saturday at 2:30 p.m. and the consolation match at noon. The tournament winner earns the WIAC's automatic bid into the NCAA III playoffs.
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