ST. LOUIS, Mo. – The Falcons continued their challenging non-conference schedule on Saturday at the WashU Bear Invite. The Falcons opened the day with a 25-16, 23-25, 25-20, 25-14 loss to No. 7 Washington. CUW followed that up with a tight battle against Simpson, where the Falcons fell 26-28, 25-23, 27-25, 26-24.

WashU was the fifth ranked opponent that the Falcons have faced in 2025.

The Falcons took the second set on Saturday with a 25-23 victory with a kill from sophomore Kayla Mulder (Whitehall, Mich.).

The second-set loss was the first time that the Bears had lost a set since September 6.

Senior Abby Proefrock (Grafton, Wis.) led the Falcons with 12 kills and hit 0.312 against the Bears while also bringing in 17 digs.

Sophomore McKenna Oetzman (Reedsburg, Wis.) had another double-double outing with 23 assist and 16 digs.

Senior Brianna Lundt (Rosendale, Wis.) led the match with 27 digs.

All four sets were decided by two points against Simpson.

The Storm got the better of the Birds in all four sets.

Senior Paige Stickney (Menomonee Falls, Wis.) led the offense with 14 kills and defensively with seven blocks.

McKenna Oetzman feasted with 27 assists, 13 digs and four service aces.

Brianna Lundt brought in 22 digs in the loss.

The Falcons open the Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference portion of the schedule on Thursday night in the home opener against Benedictine.