PALOS HEIGHTS, Ill. -- Logan Finneran (17 assists, 11 digs), Kassidy Phillips (11 kills, 17 digs) and Erin Tries (20 assists, 11 digs) each recorded a double-double as William Woods split a pair of neutral-site matches on Saturday.
The Owls made quick work of the Olivet Nazarene University Tigers 3-0 (25-23, 26-24, 25-15) but couldn't sustain the momentum, falling 3-1 (25-23, 24-26, 21-25, 27-29) to the Aquinas College Saints.
"We had a weekend of great things and a weekend of lessons learned, and even though our undefeated streak may have ended, we have so much more to fight for," William Woods volleyball coach Kandace Cook said in a release. "With every hard-fought set and every exhausting point, we rallied, we preserved and we found every ounce of grit we had and fought back. We unlocked so much potential, but I know we are capable of more."
The first set between WWU and Olivet Nazarene was a see-saw battle until late in the set, as a kill by Lauren Adams sparked a seven-point run that turned a 20-17 deficit into set point for WWU.
The Tigers mustered three points before Adams finished things off with a kill from Treis.
WWU opened up a 16-8 lead in the second, but Olivet responded with a 7-1 run to close the gap to 18-15 before pushing the Owls to a 24-24 deadlock.
Adams was again the finisher for WWU, following up an ONU attack error with a savage solo block.
The Owls romped to a 25-15 third-set win to complete the sweep.
William Woods saw its six-game unbeaten streak end in the nightcap, but the Owls went down swinging against Aquinas.
Woods opened the first set with a solid hitting performance, posting 13 kills to just two errors en route to a 25-23 set win.
The second and third set saw Aquinas string together several small runs, and despite taking the second to extra points, the Owls found themselves in a 2-1 hole after 26-24 and 25-21 set losses.
William Woods turned the aggressor in the fourth set, cranking off an 8-2 run to open, with a pair of Phillips kills bookending a kill and a solo block by Luciana Pereira Paiva to cap the run.
The Owls extended to a 21-16 lead, but Aquinas was able to call a timeout and settle into a rhythm.
The Saints took the lead at 22-21, but WWU was able to answer and reach set point first at 24-23.
Aquinas held on twice at set point for WWU before reversing the table at 26-25.
Kills from Pereira Paiva and Phillips put WWU in a position to finish things, but the Owls couldn't hang on as Aquinas took three straight points for the win.
The Owls return to Fulton on Wednesday night, hosting Culver-Stockton College at 7 p.m. in the nightcap of a split-venue doubleheader with women's soccer.