Box Score EVANSVILLE, Ind. – Three Salukis registered double-digit kills as Southern Illinois handed the University of Evansville volleyball team a 3-1 loss on Friday evening at the Carson Center.
 
Improving to 11-10 and 6-3 in the MVC with the win, SIU was led by Jessica Whitehead's 18-kill effort while Elly Braaten and Meg Viggars checked in with 13 apiece.  Leading the way for the Purple Aces (7-13, 2-7 MVC) was sophomore Emma Roberson as she tied her season high, finishing with 13 kills against the Saluki defense.  Ashley Ring posted 11. 
 
Jenn Murphy finished the night with 34 assists while Katie Klages dug the ball up 19 times, tying for the match high. 
 
Early on in the first set, it was an even match as each point was tied leading to an 8-8 score before Elly Braaten notched a kill to give the Salukis a 10-8 lead.  Evansville fought right back as a Roberson kill put UE back on top at 11-10 and they eventually extended that advantage to four points at 19-15 as an SIU error capped the rally.
 
Ashley Ring kept the pressure on as she tallied five kills in the frame, including three in the pivotal rally in the middle of the set.  The Aces would finish on an 8-3 run to grab a 1-0 lead in the match.  A .379 hitting tally launched the Aces to the win while the defense held the Salukis to just .135.  Evansville had eight total blocks in the first game.
 
Southern Illinois slipped out to a 6-4 advantage in game two before Megan Vickrey helped the Aces take a 9-7 lead thanks to some strong serving.  The Salukis came back to take a 12-11 lead on a Jessica Whitehead kill, but Ring would not let that lead last long.  Her kill put Evansville up 14-12 on a quick 3-0 spurt.
 
An evenly-played match continued as each tally was tied, sending the game to a 19-19 score.  Two quick points proved to be the difference for the Salukis as they took a 21-19 edge and hung on for a 25-23 decision.  Their defense played much better in the second set, holding the Aces hitting to a .093 tally.
 
After notching the opening two points, SIU jumped out to a 6-2 lead as four Salukis tallied a kill.  Lauren Seyller got the Aces offense back on track with a kill as the Aces cut the deficit to just a point at 9-8 on an SIU error.  Behind a pair of Meg Viggars efforts, SIU was able to take control of the game, going up 16-12 in a run capped off by an Alex Rivera ace.
 
The Salukis utilized that run and cruised to a 25-20 win.  They led by as many as seven at 24-17 before UE made a last effort, getting with four at 24-20 before Meg Viggars' seventh kill of the set capped off the game.  Viggars registered seven kills on 11 attempts, hitting .636.  As a team, SIU hit .273 in the third frame.
 
Another quick start saw SIU open up the fourth set on a 9-6 run as Emily Less swatted home three kills in the early-going.  The Salukis padded their advantage as another Less kill made it an 18-11 contest.  Their edge held strong as they hit .406 en route to a 25-17 win that clinched the match.
 
It is back to the road for the Aces next weekend as they head to Peoria, Ill. for a Friday evening matchup against Bradley before going north to Chicago on Saturday to take on Loyola.  Both matches begin at 7 p.m.