TOLEDO, OH - Toledo (9-4, 0-1 MAC) put up a strong fight on Friday evening but ended up on the short end of a 3-1 (20-25, 25-18, 26-24, 25-14) decision to pre-season MAC favorite Western Michigan (9-7, 0-1 MAC) in the conference opener for both schools at Savage Arena.

The Rockets opened the match strong against WMU with a .327 attack percentage but couldn't sustain that level and finished the contest with a .186 hitting mark. The visitors improved as the evening went along and tallied an impressive .304 ATK%.

"The biggest thing that Western Michigan did to us was breaking down our passing with their serving," first-year Toledo Head Coach Greg Smith said. "They're a veteran team that knows how to play consistently, and that's one of the things we're striving for. There were moments in the first and third sets that we played at a high level, but the second and fourth sets were the complete opposite and it showed."

Freshman OH Sondra Parys led UT with a match- and season-high 26 kills and a .340 attack percentage, but sophomore OH Amber DeWeerdt was the only other Rocket to surpass double figures in kills with 14. DeWeerdt paced Toledo defensively with a career-best 26 digs for her ninth double-double of the season.

Senior OH Michelle Moore topped WMU's attack with 16 kills, while freshman OH Kelly Griffin notched 14 kills and a .444 attack mark. Senior Katie Eberling led the Broncos with 24 digs, and junior OH Allyson Doyle contributed a team-high five blocks.

The Rockets took charge of the first set early and never looked back.  A three-point run gave UT a 9-4 advantage and forced WMU to call its first timeout. The Broncos then closed to within 12-10 before Parys registered terminations on four of UT's next six points to help the hosts take an 18-12 advantage. Toledo's lead never dipped under four points the rest of the way with a Parys' kill ending the set. Parys led Toledo in the set with nine kills and a .643 attack percentage, while DeWeerdt tallied a team-high nine digs.

WMU evened the contest at one set apiece thanks to a strong blocking performance from sophomore MB Ashley Turnage who tallied four blocks. Toledo never led in the set but was within 14-12 when a 5-1 spurt gave the Broncos a 19-13 cushion that UT couldn't dent. Parys again led the Rockets in the set with five kills, while Moore paced WMU with three.

The third set was a nip-and-tuck affair that saw the score tied on 12 different occasions. The visitors took an early 4-2 lead but the Rockets answered right back with a four-point streak for a 6-4 advantage. WMU followed with a four-point run of its own to re-take the lead at 9-7. The Broncos wouldn't relinquish the lead the rest of the set as UT stayed within two points or less.  Doyle ended the set by notching a kill and teaming with freshman MB Jessica Brown for a block of DeWeerdt's attack. Parys and DeWeerdt tied for the team lead with five kills apiece, while Moore tallied six terminations to lead WMU.

The Broncos took control early in the fourth set and would never allow the Rockets to regain their momentum. Parys registered back-to-back kills to bring UT within 13-11 but a 6-1 Bronco run gave WMU a 19-12 lead that UT couldn't overcome.

Toledo returns to action on Saturday evening with a 6:00 p.m. matchup vs. MAC West Division foe Northern Illinois (6-8, 0-1 MAC).