Western Kentucky senior outside hitter Katie Howard celebrates a point during the Hilltoppers' 3-0 win against Eastern Illinois on Friday at E.A. Diddle Arena.

Western Kentucky’s volleyball team finished their Friday with six straight set victories, closing out with a 3-0 (25-12, 25-9, 25-15) sweep of Eastern Illinois after earlier sweeping Arkansas State in the Alyssa Cavanaugh Classic at E.A. Diddle Arena.

WKU freshman outside hitter Faith Young posted her best performance yet with 10 kills, tying fellow outside hitter Kaylee Cox.

Cox finished the night hitting an even .500, while Young finished at .375. Sophomore middle hitter Izzy Van De Wiele led the way at the net with five blocks.

The Panthers (4-5 overall) finished the night at -.114 hitting percentage, the lowest of any opponent hitting percentage this season.

WKU opened the match in dramatic fashion on Friday, with a hitting percentage of .423 and an offensive performance highlighted by five straight kills. Cox, Van De Wiele and freshman outside hitter Alivia Skidmore all finished the set with three kills each. At the net, sophomore middle hitter Gabby Weihe led with two blocks.

The Hilltoppers kept their foot on the gas in set two, holding the Panthers to a meager -.250 hitting percentage. Weihe led the charge in the second with three kills and three back-to-back blocks with Van De Wiele. WKU exploded defensively, not only holding EIU to a negative hitting percentage, but accumulating six team blocks along the way.

The final set of the night saw Cox and Young erupt for eight and seven kills respectively, while WKU collected three more team blocks. The staunch WKU defense also prevented the Panthers from breaking into the positives, holding EIU to a .000 hitting percentage.

The Hilltoppers accumulated seven service aces, led by Cox with two. Two WKU players, Cox and Callie Bauer, finished above a .500 hitting percentage. 

WKU wraps up its non-conference schedule with a match against Austin Peay on Saturday at Diddle Arena. First serve is set for 1:30 p.m.