EAST PEORIA, Ill. -- Bradley split the first two sets of its Friday morning match with Wisconsin-Milwaukee and appeared to be on the verge of taking a two-sets-to-one lead over UWM, before the Panthers made a late push to take set three. Wisconsin-Milwaukee eventually closed out the match with a fourth-set victory to hand the Braves a 16-25, 25-21, 25-27, 17-25 setback in BU's home opener as part of the Wingate by Wyndham Invitational at Illinois Central College's Lorene Ramsey Gym.

The Braves (0-4 overall) struggled offensively in the opener, hitting -.100 in the frame. Despite the offensive struggles, Bradley held a 12-10 lead on UWM in the early going. The Panthers took control of the set with a 10-0 run, however, and cruised to a 25-16 win.

Bradley led by as many as seven points in the second set and held off any late rally attempts by Wisconsin-Milwaukee to even the match with a 25-21 victory. Sophomore Melissa Collins (Manchester, Mo./Parkway South) found the floor with all four of her attack attempts in the frame and junior Amy Reichel (Schaumburg, Ill./Schaumburg) also added four kills in the second set to help lead a balanced BU attack.

BU was in control most of the third set, leading by as many as six points (20-14) before UWM came roaring back. The Panthers used a 5-1 spurt to pull to within striking distance at 21-19. The Braves pushed the lead back to three points (24-21) on a Panther service error and was serving set point when Becky Peters notched her ninth kill of the set to make a two point game. Wisconsin-Milwaukee's Natalie Schmitting helped the Panthers pull even with a block assist and kill to knot the score at 24-24. Bradley and UWM traded kills, before a Schmitting kill gave Wisconsin-Milwaukee a 26-25 edge and Natalie Cherry closed out the 27-25 UWM win with her third kill of the frame. Reichel led Bradley offensively with eight kills and boasted a .545 attack percentage in the third set.

Wisconsin-Milwaukee (2-2 overall) led from start to finish in the fourth set and closed out the match with a 25-17 victory. The Panthers scored the first four points of the set and never allowed Bradley to cut their lead under two points during the deciding set.

Reichel tied her career-high with 16 kills to lead the Braves offensively, while Collins chipped in with a season-high 11 kills. Senior Sam Black (Atalissa, Iowa/West Liberty) recorded her first double-double of the year with 30 assists and 12 digs. Freshman Rachelle Dejean (Naperville, Ill./Neuqua Valley) led Bradley's defensive efforts with a match and season-best 22 digs.

Peters led UWM with a match-high 19 kills. Maddie Sueppel was strong at the net for the Panthers, tallying 16 kills without an attack error and also had five block assists.

In other action at the 2008 Wingate by Wyndham Invitational, SIU-Edwardsville (2-1 overall) topped Eastern Michigan (1-3 overall) in five sets (25-20, 25-23, 19-25, 19-25, 18-16). Samantha Schulte led the Cougars with 17 kills and attacked at a .410 clip. Four players reached double figures in kills for Eastern Michigan, led by Jennifer Swartz's 14 kills.

Play at the Wingate by Wyndham Invitational continues later today at Illinois Central College. The Braves open the evening session with a 6 p.m. match against SIU-Edwardsville. Eastern Michigan and Wisconsin-Milwaukee will follow with an 8 p.m. match.