Chicago, Ill. — Illinois Tech women's volleyball lost to Aurora 3-0 (19-25, 17-25, 18-25) on Wednesday night at Keating Sports Center in the NACC opener for both teams. The Scarlet Hawks hit .025 with 25 kills and 22 attack errors, while the Spartans finished at .159 with 32 kills.
Rowan Midgette and
Lilia Donaldson paced the Hawks with 6 kills each, while
Brooke Rifkin had 18 digs and 2 service aces.
The Scarlet Hawks are 7-5 overall and 0-1 in NACC play. The Spartans are 12-2 overall and 1-0 in NACC play.
How It Happened
After
Rowan Midgette's opening service ace, the Spartans moved ahead 3-2, but the Scarlet Hawks scored the next four points with help from two Spartans ball-handling errors, a
Victoria Aspurez service ace and a
Lilia Donaldson kill to go in front 6-3. The Spartans answered with four straight points for a 7-6 edge before
Karla Trautmann Mendez tied it at 7-7, and the Scarlet Hawks continued to pull even through the middle of the set, reaching ties at 9-9, 12-12, 14-14 and 15-15. After the Spartans moved ahead 20-18, an attack error by Katelyn Ruse on a block by Midgette and Trautmann Mendez brought the Scarlet Hawks within 20-19, but the Spartans took the final five points behind two Peyton Darguzis kills, a Trinity Nelson kill and a service ace to win the set 25-19.
The Spartans built a 9-4 lead in the second set behind kills from Trinity Nelson and Sophie Knazur and a Katie Brisk service ace, but the Scarlet Hawks got the sideout and Trautmann Mendez served four straight points, including an ace, to tie it 9-9. The Spartans moved back ahead 14-10 before
Payton Smith's kill and consecutive
Brooke Rifkin aces helped the Scarlet Hawks close to 14-13, and kills by Midgette and Trautmann Mendez brought the Scarlet Hawks even again at 16-16. From there, the Spartans scored eight straight points to reach 24-16, and after Aspurez put down a kill, Nelson's kill closed the set 25-17.
The Scarlet Hawks answered an early 2-0 deficit with Smith's kill and Donaldson's block to tie the third set at 2-2, and the teams traded points until the Scarlet Hawks pulled even again at 5-5. The Spartans created separation from there, scoring five straight points behind two Izzie Rysanek kills and a Katie Brisk service ace to move in front 10-5, then stretched the margin to 14-6 after a Trinity Nelson ace. The Scarlet Hawks found a late four-point push from 21-10 to 21-14, with Aspurez putting down a kill and Trautmann Mendez adding a service ace during the stretch. Midgette and Donaldson added kills after the Spartans moved ahead 23-15, but the Spartans closed the set 25-18 on a Scarlet Hawks service error.
Scarlet Hawk Standouts
Brooke Rifkin
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- team-high 18 digs
- 2 service aces
- 2 assists
Rowan Midgette
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- team-high 14 assists
- 6 kills on .385 hitting
- 9 digs
- 1 service ace
Lilia Donaldson
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- 6 kills on .400 hitting
- 1 solo block
- 7.0 points
Karla Trautmann Mendez
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- 2 service aces
- 2 total blocks, including 1 solo block
- 7.5 points
Spartans Top Performers
Trinity Nelson
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- 23 assists
- 11 digs
- 4 kills
- 1 service ace
Katie Brisk
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- 14 digs
- 4 assists
- 2 service aces
Carolyn Lippe
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- 13 digs
- 2 service aces
Katelyn Ruse
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- 7 kills
Match Notes:
- The Scarlet Hawks fall to 0-10 lifetime against the Spartans.
- Team - Achieved at least 6 service aces in 5 consecutive matches during the 2026-27 season.
- Rifkin - Achieved at least 2 service aces in 4 consecutive matches.
- Midgette - Achieved a hitting percentage of at least .385 in 2 consecutive matches.
- Donaldson - Achieved 10 solo blocks this season.
Up Next
The Scarlet Hawks step back outside NACC play when they travel to Terre Haute, Indiana, to face Rose-Hulman and Trine in tri-match play on Saturday, Sept. 26, at 10 a.m. and 12:00 p.m., respectively.
