CHICAGO, Ill. -- In its home opener, the No. 14-ranked University of Chicago volleyball team lost to Wheaton College 3-1 (25-21, 25-23, 25-21, 25-22) on Wednesday.

The Maroons fell to 7-4 and the Thunder improved to 9-4.

Wheaton grabbed the first set 25-21 and was in control with a 7-2 lead in the second set. But UChicago mounted a comeback to snatch the lead 16-14. The two sides went back and forth and the score stood tied at 23-23. A block by senior middle blocker Maggie Vaughn put the Maroons up one and senior rightside hitter Katie Huntington spiked a kill down the middle to put the set away 25-23.

With the match tied at one set each, the crucial third set slowly started shifting Wheaton's way. The Thunder used some big swings to score points and found openings in the Maroons defense. The visitors ended up taking the third set 25-21.

The fourth set saw Wheaton take a late lead once again at 21-15. UChicago kept things interesting by winning the next three points and Huntington's kill kept the home team alive at 22-24. But the Thunder finished the match with a kill to make it 25-22.

Stat Leaders
Katie Huntington (Rightside, Sr.) - 17 kills, 8 digs
Morgan Barry (Outside Hitter, Jr.) - 11 kills, 13 digs, 3 blocks
Maggie Vaughn (Middle Blocker, Sr.) - 8 kills, 3 blocks
Kara Conway (Middle Blocker, Jr.) - 5 kills on 11 attempts, 5 blocks
Jasmine Mobley (Outside Hitter, So.) - 5 kills on 11 attempts, 6 digs
Nikki DelZenero (Setter, Sr.) - 21 assists, 9 digs
Ragine Graves (Setter, So.) - 19 assists, 7 digs
Eirene Kim (Libero, Jr.) - 23 digs, 6 assists