Jacksonville, Ill. – The Concordia University Chicago women's volleyball team traveled to Jacksonville, Ill., as they competed in the first day of the Illinois College Invitational. After Day 1 of the tournament, the Cougars find themselves at 1-1.  
 
For the first match of the day, CUC took on the Blackburn College Beavers. Concordia took the Beavers down in three sets, earning their first sweep of the season.
 
Blackburn Highlights:

• Katie Stonich (Sadieville, Ky.) made a big impact for the Cougars on the outside. The sophomore had a match-high 13 kills. She only recorded one error to have a .500 hitting percentage, which is the best of her career. She also contributed 10 digs to earn her first double-double of the season.
• Leading the offense as always was sophomore Isabelle Vernengo (Plainfield, Ind.). The setter registered 29 assists on the match while also grabbing seven digs.
• Julia Beers (Mishawaka, Ind.) continues to shine in the back row for the Cougars. The senior libero secured a team-high 13 digs.

 
Following the match against Blackburn, the Cougars played the host school Illinois College in the final game of the day. After battling against the Lady Blue for five sets, CUC just fell short, losing two sets to three.
 
Illinois College Highlights:

• Joy Greco (Brookfield, Ill.) played on the outside for the Cougars tonight, recording a team-high 12 kills.
• Stonich was a big offensive threat for CUC yet again in this second match as she tallied 11 kills while also grabbing an ace.
• Beers built off her success from the first game, ending this game with 28 digs to lead the team again in the back row.
• Vernengo was the key playmaker again this match. She ended this second game with a total of 45 assists to go along with nine digs.
• Grace Heywood (Northbrook, Ill.) and Sophie Kovachovich (Huntley, Ill.) worked with Beers in the backrow to keep the ball off the ground. Heywood finished the night with 13 digs while Kovachovich contributed 10.
• Mikala Perino (DePere, Wis.) made her presence known at the net. Not only did she hit .308 (5 kills, 1 error, 13 attempts), but she recorded five blocks as well.
• Alex Clausen (Naperville, Ill.) made the biggest impact from the back line during this match, serving up three aces.

Today's matches give the Cougars an overall record of 1-2 on the season.
 
Concordia Chicago will be back in action again tomorrow beginning at 1 p.m. as they play their final two matches of the Illinois College Invitational. They will take on Knox College to start the day at 1 p.m. followed by a match against Monmouth College at 4 p.m. Links for all of the night's matches can be found at illinoiscollegeathletics.com.