MIDWAY, Ky. -- The 2020 season was filled with 'firsts' for the Midway women's volleyball team as they continue to knock down doors and ascend to the top of the River States Conference. Well, in front a packed and raucous Marshall Gymnasium on Friday night, Jonea Rima's club knocked down another door – the biggest door in her five-year tenure at Midway.

In an RSC West Division showdown with IU Kokomo, the Eagles entered the night with an 0-14 mark all-time against the Cougars. Midway – who has struggled to take a set off IU Kokomo in the previous 14 meetings – wasn't going to be denied on Friday night.

The Eagles struck first winning the opening set 25-20 and then followed that up winning the second set 25-17 to take a commanding 2-0 advantage. Midway – now in unfamiliar territory – let the Cougars back in the match by winning the third and fourth sets to force a decisive fifth and final set.

The fifth set was filled with tense moments as anticipation grew with each passing point. With the victory in sight, Brooke Trompler put down a kill sending the crowd into a frenzy as the Eagles came away with the 3-2 victory (25-20, 25-17, 18-25, 21-25, 15-12).

With the win, Midway continues their perfect start to the season moving to 6-0 overall and 1-0 in league play. IU Kokomo, meanwhile, falls to 8-6 overall and 1-1 in conference action. Friday's win also was the first in program history for the Eagles over the Cougars.

The tense, fifth and final frame was a back-and-forth battle from the start. Back-to-back kills from Tori Richman (Fort Wayne, Ind.) and Alysha Tullar (Rancho Cucamonga, Calif.) helped provide the Eagles a 3-0 cushion.

The Cougars cut the deficit to 3-2, but Richman then stepped behind the service line and served back-to-back aces as Midway pushed to a 9-5 lead. IUK once again cut it to one at 9-8, but three straight points from the home extended the lead back to four at 12-8.

Like twice before, IU Kokomo got within one at 13-12, but this time, Midway closed the door for good coming out of a timeout. On an overpass, Richman put down a thunderous kill getting Midway to match point. Then, with Midway out of system, Trompler sealed the 3-2 victory with yet another thunderous kill.

The final kill capped off a sensational performance from Trompler. The sophomore from Campton, Ky. finished with a match-high 18 kills committing just four errors in her 38 swings for a .368 hitting clip. She also added 11 kills to her stat line.

Alysha Tullar and Tori Richman added nine kills apiece, while Kaylee Criswell (Rockdale, Texas) put down eight kills in 11 swings to finish with a .727 hitting clip.

Evelyn Milburn (Versailles, Ky.) finished the contest with 22 assists and nine digs, and Valerie Ramos (San Juan, Puerto Rico) chipped in 18 assists, while Mariana Rodriguez (Houston, Texas) led the defensive effort with 15 digs. Anju Sugiya (Tokyo, Japan) also played a crucial role down the stretch finishing with seven digs.

The Eagles posted a .346 hitting clip in the first set and a .267 clip in the second to soar to the 2-0 lead before IU Kokomo got back in the match in the third and fourth sets. The Cougars hit .259 and .241 in the third and four sets, respectively, to tie the match at the time.

Midway will now look to follow up that win with another on Saturday (Sept. 18) when they host St. Mary-of-the-Woods (Ind.) at noon ET in Marshall Gymnasium.

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