After suffering back-to-back regular-season losses for the first time since 2014, Western Kentucky’s volleyball team bounced back and closed action from the Cardinal Classic with a sweep of Kent State on Saturday afternoon in Louisville.

Earlier in the day, the 24th-ranked WKU squad suffered its first sweep of the year against Illinois.

With the tournament-closing victory, the Lady Toppers climbed to 5-2 on the year and 3-1 in neutral matches while Kent State finished winless on the weekend. WKU finished the Louisville-hosted event with three players hitting better than .300 while the squad collectively recorded a .286 reading.

Sydney Engle finished the day with 12 kills along with five assists, five digs, three blocks and an ace for WKU (5-2). The senior recorded a team-best .528 hitting clip over the tournament and earned all-tournament honors from the Cardinal Classic.

WKU is back in action for a midweek match at Belmont on Tuesday. Game time is 6 p.m. in Nashville.

cross country opens season with pair of 4th-place finishes

Endalow Takele’s fifth-place finish paced the Western Kentucky men’s cross country Saturday at the Tennessee Tech-hosted Golden Eagle Invitational in Cookeville, Tenn.

Takele finished the men’s 6K run with a mark of 19 minutes, 48.7 seconds. Julien Cuyeu crossed the line second for the Hilltoppers, coming in at 13th overall with a mark of 20:08.9. Taylor Scarbrough was WKU’s third top-20 finisher as he came in at 19th with a time of 20:25.2.

WKU men finished fourth behind Auburn, Tennessee Tech and Mississippi State. Southern Illinois and Tennessee State closed out the six-team field.

On the women’s side, WKU had three top-25 finishes. Savannah Ames led the way in 20th with a time of 21:23.0 in the women’s 5K race. Brianna Wolken clocked a 22:33.3 to finish 24th, while Morgan Kannapel was 25th in 23:01.2.

The Lady Toppers picked up a dual victory over Tennessee State, finishing fourth overall. Mississippi State, Auburn and Southern Illinois collected the top three spots.

WKU will return to action Sept. 16 at the Commodore Classic in Nashville.