FAIRBORN, Ohio - The Cleveland State volleyball team earned a spot in the semifinals of the 2023 Horizon League Tournament Friday, picking up a 3-1 victory over Milwaukee in a first round contest. With the win, the Vikings will be appearing in their second straight #HLVB Semifinal and their 16th semifinal appearance under head coach Chuck Voss.

Four Vikings finished the match with double-digit kills, paced by Laken Voss with 16. Liberty Torres added 14, Madison Olinger chipped in 12 and JeriLynn Koehler posted 10.

Karly Klaer recorded 49 assists on the match, helping the Vikings notch a .343 hitting percentage on the contest.

Klaer also paced the Viking defense with 16 digs, while Emma Walker added 15 and Lesley Marshall tallied 10.

The Vikings combined for 12 total service aces on the match, including four from Walker and three from Koehler and Voss.

With her 15 digs against the Panthers, Walker moved into second place on the CSU Single Season Digs List, finishing the match with 584 digs on the year.

After dropping the first set, the Vikings responded with a 25-18 win in the second set to even the match at 1-1.

The two teams traded points over the first part of the frame, until the Vikings rattled off back-to-back points on a Panther error and a Karly Klaer service ace to gain a 13-10 advantage midway through the set. The Vikings were then able to extend their lead to 18-13 following a pair of Emma Walker service aces, while a Madison Olinger kill gave Cleveland State set point at 24-18.

Cleveland State then closed out the frame with another Olinger kill, picking up the 25-18 set victory.

The Vikings carried their momentum into the second set then, as Cleveland State once again was able to distance themselves midway through the frame at 14-11 after forcing a Milwaukee error. The Vikings held a sizable lead for the rest of the set then, with a JeriLynn Koehler kill putting the Vikings up 24-19, before they closed out the 25-19 third set win.

The two teams once again traded points over the start of the fourth set, until a 4-0 run from the Vikings put Cleveland State up 17-12 on a Laken Voss service ace. A few points later, an Olinger kill gave Cleveland State match point, before yet another Panther error gave the set to the Vikings by a score of 25-19.

Cleveland State will now face top-seeded Wright State in Saturday's semifinal contest, with first serve set for 3:00 p.m.