Three games are all that are left to decide if the University of Evansville volleyball team will continue its season at the State Farm Missouri Valley Conference Tournament during the Thanksgiving holiday. The Aces (13-17, 6-9 MVC) are in the thick of it with four other teams, and the team travels to face two of them this weekend in Drake and Creighton.

Drake (19-10, 7-7 MVC) is currently tied for fourth with Creighton (10-15, 7-7 MVC) in the conference standings. The Aces face Drake at 7:00 p.m. on Friday before challenging Creighton at 3:00 p.m. on Saturday.

“This weekend is just like every weekend that we have been facing lately with everybody in the thick of the conference race,” said Evansville head coach Mike Swan. “We have had some setbacks this week, so regardless of who is on the court playing, I hope that we can step up and perform. I think the girls still feel confident, and we have a good shot at getting into the tournament. We just have to execute and do the things that we do well.”

The Aces are currently led by senior Ginta Gabruseva on the offensive side of the ball with 3.20 kills per set. In conference play, Gabruseva has recorded 3.60 kills per set, which ranks her third in the MVC. Sophomore Brooke Maher follows behind with 2.71 while junior Emily Wandersee has 2.53 kills per set and a .260 attack percentage.

Evansville is also currently ranked 17th in the NCAA with 17.42 digs per set. Junior Julie Sylvester leads the charge with 4.79 digs per set and ranks third in league play with a 5.53 average.

Drake enters Friday’s match after a tough loss to Creighton over the weekend and a win against South Dakota on Monday. Drake set back the Aces earlier this season with a 3-0 win in Evansville, but UE has won at Drake since 2003. Angela Bys leads the Bulldogs with 2.59 kills per game and 262 total kills this season. Bys is followed by Alisa DeBerg Roth with 2.28 kills per game and Michelle Reidy with 2.09. Reidy also leads the team in blocks with 0.99 blocks per game and 98 total for the season while Alana Wittenburg has posted 4.99 digs per game.

Creighton will be playing its last home match of the season on Saturday versus UE. The Bluejays are coming off a 3-0 loss to No. 20 Saint Louis in a weekday match-up. The Aces beat Creighton for the first time under Swan earlier this year in Evansville. Jessica Houts leads the Bluejays with 2.79 kills per set and currently rank first in the league with 1.45 blocks per set. Allie Oelke follows Houts in kills per set with 3.10 while Nayka Benitez tops the team with 4.28 digs per set.