UW-La Crosse headed to WIAC tournament championship

Eagles head to UW-Whitewater on Saturday

For the first time since 2004, the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse volleyball team is headed to the WIAC tournament championship.

The 13th-ranked Eagles took down No. 20 UW-Oshkosh 3-1 (25-17, 21-25, 26-24, 25-18) at Mitchell Hall on Thursday night.

Next up, a rematch at 5 p.m. Saturday at 11th-ranked UW-Whitewater (26-6), which eliminated the Eagles from the tourney last year. The winner earns an automatic bid to the Division III NCAA tournament.

The Warhawks needed five sets to take down 17th-ranked UW-Stevens Point in the semifinals.

UW-L (22-4) is 1-4 in WIAC tournament title matches, winning the one back in 2003.

Against UW-W this season, the Eagles were swept 3-0 back on Oct. 26. Last year, the Eagles beat the Warhawks 3-0 in the regular season, before losing 3-1 in the WIAC tournament semifinals.

Despite the loss, UW-L received an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament, where it lost 3-0 to Carthage.

In the win over UW-Oshkosh (26-9), setter Jaclyn Barrette had 12 digs and 53 assists, feeding teammate Stephanie Henk for 18 kills.

Both Jill Entinger and Leah Putzier had 12 kills, while Danica Johnson led the team with 24 digs. Paige Schmidt also had 12 digs.