STEVENS POINT, Wis. – The UW-Stevens Point volleyball team (6-1) had little trouble dispatching of visiting Ripon and Bethel in a pair of sweeps to open the UW-Stevens Point Invitational on Friday.

Senior Kelly Magliano (Chicago, Ill./Mount Assisi Academy) had a season-high 13 kills in the Pointers' win over the Redhawks.  Fellow senior Morgan Wirkus (Marathon, Wis./Marathon) racked up 12 kills in the victory over Bethel.
 
Sophomore Abby Majercik (Johnsburg, Ill./Johnsburg) recorded 23 assists against Ripon while senior Delaney McCreary (West Bend, Wis./East) led the Pointers with 21 helpers against the Royals. 
 
Another senior, Kendra Kundinger (Auburndale, Wis./Auburndale), had double figure digs in both matches.  On the day, UWSP his .194 or better in all six sets.
 
UWSP 3, Ripon 0 (25-17, 25-9, 25-8)
Magliano drilled five kills as part of an eight-point run that saw the Pointers separate from a 5-all tie.  Later in the set, back-to-back aces by Wirkus propelled UWSP to an 11-point advantage.  Sophomore April Gehl (Hilbert, Wis./Hilbert) ended the first set with her third kill of the game.
 
The Pointers began the second set on a 5-0 run and never looked back.  Sophomores Tara Emme (St. Nazianz, Wis./Valders) and Carly NIsleit each recorded multiple kills in the set.
 
UWSP used the momentum to jump out to a 13-4 lead.  Magliano buried three kills in a five-point spurt to extend the lead to 18-5.  A pair of late set kills by Gehl closed out the win.
 
UWSP 3, Bethel 0 (25-14, 25-16, 25-19)
Gehl recorded a couple early kills and an ace by Kundinger gave UWSP a 7-2 edge in the first set.  Wirkus and senior Danielle Coleman (Rockford, Ill./Keith Country Day) recorded back-to-back kills as the Pointers pushed the lead to 10 at 14-4 en route to a comfortable win.
 
The second set began with five-straight points by the Pointers.  Consecutive kills by Coleman upped the advantage to 9-3.  Later in the set, sophomore Maddie Courter (Geneva, Ill./Geneva) added a pair of kills and Wirkus finished the set with kills on the Pointers' final three points.
 
UWSP used four kills by Wirkus as part of a nine-point run to jump ahead 13-7 in the third set.  Late in the set, Coleman recorded a kill to start a three-point run to end the match.
 
The Pointers return to action on Saturday against a pair of ranked foes.  UWSP faces No. 20 Gustavus Adolphus at 12:00 and No. 12 Millikin at 4:00 p.m. on the final day of the UW-Stevens Point Invitational.