The No. 4 UW-Whitewater volleyball team took down WIAC rival UW-La Crosse in four games Wednesday, Oct. 1. While the 3-1 final score shows the Warhawks seemingly controlling the matchup, the Eagles made the Warhawks work for each point. 

The night started out with Whitewater setting the tone early, and it appeared their dominance would continue. In the first set of the match, the Warhawks jumped out to an early 5-0 lead and cruised to a 25-10 victory. 

Set two of the night is when things flipped on Whitewater. La Crosse took control early and jumped out to an 8-3 lead. The Eagles wouldn’t relinquish that lead, winning the set 25-16. La Crosse then jumped out to another quick lead in the third set, this time 10-3, silencing the energetic Warhawk crowd and sparking a timeout from head coach Stacy Boudreau.

“We weren’t passing well, and they were passing well,” Boudreau said. “Both teams have really good offenses and when you’re going against three attackers every time that’s hard to defend. Just locking in and trying to get them out of the system with more aggressive serves to get our offense going.”

This timeout flipped the switch for the Warhawks, as they would rally to win the third set 25-20. The fourth, and ultimately final, set of the night was a back and forth battle. Both teams traded blows into the high teens, where the Warhawks ultimately pulled away to win the fourth set 25-18, and the match 3-1.

With this victory, UW-W is now 2-1 in conference play. However, the Warhawks approach each match with the same mindset.

“Every single match that we play is super important for us since we’re so young,” Boudreau said. “These are opportunities for us to grow and get better.”

The Warhawks have 13 freshmen on this year’s team. They returned just five student-athletes, and only two starters, from the 2024 national champion runner-up team. The youth has led to an acclimation period where there are some growing pains as the team has to get used to one another and how they play.

As a result, the veteran members of the program have to step up and take on a leadership role. Junior setter Aubrie Krzus has taken it upon herself to become a very vocal leader and set the tone for the younger athletes.

“We’ve all really come together to help lead these freshmen because there are so many of them,” Krzus said. 

Coach Boudreau compared Krzus to a quarterback – the center of the team and the one orchestrating the offense. Krzus is fourth on the team in kills with 87, but where her impact is most felt is when she’s setting teammates up for their attack. Krzus has 564 of the Warhawks’ 720 assists this season. The next most assists on the team is Emma Bludgen with 38. Against the Eagles, Krzus had 7 kills and 34 assists.

“It’s very important to me that I set my teammates up for success,” Krzus said. “But my passers, they’re the first contact. They do an amazing job getting me that pass. I can’t do anything without them.”

On the other hand, with so many new faces and so few returning players, some of the freshmen are going to have to step up. One freshman that has taken advantage of this opportunity is Gaby DiMotto. 

DiMotto is second on the team in kills, with 164 this season. Only junior middle hitter Abbie Dix has more kills with 171. Against La Crosse, DiMotto set the tone with her 17 kills.

“It means a lot to have this big role on the team in my first season,” DiMotto said. “Everyone on the team has helped me a lot, especially Aubrie [Krzus] and Abbie [Dix]. They’ve been really good mentors and it’s been so much fun.”

Coach Boudreau alluded DiMotto to being a “terminator,” noting the impact that she had on the court. With the Warhawks losing two All-American outsiders from last year’s team, there was a hole to fill. DiMotto has started to fill that hole, and she’s steadily improved over the course of the season.

A key component to the Warhawks’ success, and ability to learn as they go is communication. Both athletes and coaches have emphasized the importance of communication time and time again. Whether that’s the centers communicating with the setter or the setter communicating with the hitters, everyone should know what’s going on at all times.

“Communication is the key to our success,” DiMotto said. “It went up a lot tonight and if we continue building on that we will continue to have success.”

Another key component for the Warhawks’ success has been the home crowd. With their victory over the Eagles, and their Oct. 4 victory over the University of Chicago, UW-W now has an 9-0 record at home this season.

“When people show up to our games it makes us feel so good,” Krzus said. “The atmosphere is just so much better when we have fans. Our parents come from different states and drive really far. It’s just really important.”

The Warhawks have some time off before returning to action Oct. 10-11 in Kris Russell Arena for the third Warhawk Invite.