WHEATON, Ill. – The 22-ranked Elmhurst volleyball team opened CCIW play with a 18-25, 27-25, 25-21, 25-20 victory over Wheaton College.

Elmhurst (5-2, 1-0 CCIW) fell behind quickly in the opening set, trailing the Thunder 15-9 midway through the set. Wheaton (3-8, 0-1 CCIW) pulled away for the 25-18 win.
Elmhurst fought back in the second, erasing an early three-point deficit and taking an 18-14 lead. Wheaton pulled even at 23-all but a service error gave the Bluejays a set point. Wheaton scored two straight points to earn a set point, but three straight kills from Melissa Nava gave Elmhurst the set at 27-25.
 
The Bluejays broke open a 13-13 tie in the fourth set with an 8-3 run to build a 21-16 lead. Wheaton came as close as three points at 23-20, but Alli Rogers ended the set with a kill.
 
Elmhurst and Wheaton were deadlocked at 14-all in the fourth set before the Bluejays ripped off a 5-0 run behind the serve of Alli Rogers, taking a 19-14 lead in the process. A kill from Mary Lawrence gave the Bluejays the set and the match.
 
Elmhurst hit .233 for the contest with 60 kills and 20 errors in 172 attempts. Four players reached double figures in kills for the Bluejays. Lawrence pounded down a team-leading 16 kills to go with four blocks while hitting .423. Nava added 12 kills and hit .303 while Nimrick recorded her second triple-double of the season with 11 kills, 12 digs and a match-high 42 assists. Rogers chipped in with 10 kills and seven digs while Mel Lundin tallied seven kills. Amy Schryver led the Bluejays in digs, finishing with 26.
 
Wheaton finished the contest with a .229 hitting percentage with 57 kills and 21 errors in 157 attempts. Shelby Knowles powered the Thunder in the loss with 19 kills and 22 digs. Megan Lacey added 11 kills and 23 digs and Madeline Moore finished with 10 kills for Wheaton.
 
Elmhurst travels to the Wittenberg University Tournament this weekend (September 16-17).